Femme Fatale
by grissomsbutterfly1013
Summary: A female sexual predator is loose in Vegas, and the team is assigned to stopping the terror once and for all. As her attacks escalate, Grissom goes missing and forces Sara to make a discovery that will change the way she looks at him forever.
1. Prologue

**A/N: **Sorry to all who were reading my other fic "Forever Fragile"! I'm updating soon, I just had to write this fiction before the idea vanished from my mind. This particular story is very intense and I can only thank my beta **Unspoken **for working out the story's plot. More to come very soon.

Prologue

**Femme Fatale**

As Grissom kissed the woman before him, an image entered his mind.

_The woman he saw had auburn hair which flowed to no end, and her smile could light up a room._

The woman in front of him bore no resemblance. As she continued to kiss him with growing passion, Grissom's gut continued to tell him that something was wrong.

The woman kissing his neck and undoing his shirt had short blonde hair and green eyes that were in reality ravishing, but did not belong to Sara.

He finally remembered the truth and now had two questions pulsating through his mind.

Who was the woman he was kissing, and why isn't it Sara?


	2. Chapter 1: Nulle

Chapter 1

**Femme Fatale**

It was one of those days where Ecklie was on the war path, a day where no man or CSI lab technician would dare approach the stressed, power hungry deputy director. Grissom was one of those soles brave enough to approach, for he had something the others did not: sonority . He couldn't just be replaced; he kept their lab at the number one spot in the country rather than number two. His lab was too good just to be a two. One may be the loneliest number for some, but for Grissom, it was victory and perfection.

"Ecklie, I need to speak with you, if you have a moment." Grissom casually smiled, as he noted beads of sweat dripping down the lab director's narrowed brow.

"Grissom as much as I would love to discuss the latest cockroach race with you, as you can see I'm in a hurry. The sheriff wants me at a press conference in ten minutes, its about the femme fatale rapist. Apparently, the men are refusing to release information to the police, so I have to fill in the blanks to the media." Ecklie continued to barge down the hallway and Grissom struggled to keep up.

"That is just what I wanted to talk with you about." Grissom's statement stopped Ecklie in his tracks.

"New information I hope?" Ecklie placed his arms on his hips, much like Peter Pan would when admiring his shadow on an adjacent wall.

"She's escalating, and some people still find her crimes amusing. Her last attacks have gotten more violent."

"Which, I could have figured out for myself Gil. She's obviously dangerous, and Vegas isn't taking the matter seriously, exactly what this press conference is about." Ecklie retorted.

"Rape is serious no matter who commits it, male or female. The only thing different is that men are more ashamed to admit the offense than women. We're working on the victims as best as we can, but most are too embarrassed to admit they were violated by a woman." Grissom recited general facts from his brain as he waited for Ecklie to respond.

"Well I guess you better get started on that questioning then, we have to catch this rapist before she 'escalates.' I'm off to the conference, I'm leaving this in your hands, I expect a full report when I return." With his final statement, Ecklie lightly jogged down the rest of the lab's hallway and out to the parking lot.

"Grissom, questioning is starting in the conference room, the most recent victim John Frank has volunteered to give us some information. Maybe the others will come forward once they realize they could help." Sara leaned against a door frame and casually waited for Grissom to join her.

"Well, as Freda Alder once said, 'rape is the only crime in which the victim becomes the accused.'"

And with that final quote of intellectual enlightenment, the pair was off to the conference room in search of answers.

**XxxX**

The conference room had been made more cheerful with a vase full of wild flowers, Sara had brought in before her shift. Grissom's garden was full of untamed plants, which usually did not make an appearance in one's typical pruned garden. However, since Grissom rarely had time for his bugs, let alone a garden, she wasn't surprised at the outbreak of luscious wildflowers blooming in his backyard. They had been going out for no more than six months, and she had already transferred her possessions and trinkets into his cold, masculine townhouse. One of the first things she did was throw out the old experiments in his fridge and actually buy groceries. Grissom told her he couldn't remember a time when his fridge was full of edible food; he was accustomed to eating out before shift. Sara on the other hand, was accustomed to home cooked meals, there was hardly a fight over the subject. What man could resist a woman's cooking? After all, the heart to every man was through a home cooked meal.

Grissom gently stroked Sara's back before pulling out a chair for her, their relationship was no secret. Catherine was the first to figure it out, she found out through simple CSI deductions. Once Grissom and Sara booked off the same days for a vacation, she knew their act was up. It did'nt take long for the rest of the team to hear of Catherine's gossip, it was a well known fact that office news speculations could not be kept to herself. Once Ecklie got wind of their pairing, he gently approached Grissom with his concerns. Grissom explained their relationship and how they would remain professional at work. He never heard any graft from Ecklie again on the matter; he didn't want to lose one of the lab's most valuable resources.

As Grissom prepared himself for the grim nature of their interview, he put a reassuring hand on Sara's shoulder once more. Rape, no matter who was involved was always a sensitive subject for Sara. Grissom still did not know the full story behind Sara's emotions, he was confident she would tell him in time.

John Frank was the Femme Fatale Rapist's twentieth victim in a matter of three months, and was the first victim to come forward with information. Female rapists are extremely rare, but not unheard of. From Grissom's research he discovered that ten to twenty percent of all males in the general populous would be sexually violated at some point in their lives. In fact, one in every ten rape victims is male, a statistic that the common population would find amusing. Most believe men to be too strong or too obsessed with sex to ever feel violated during rape situation. Most would be told to suck up their emotions and celebrate that they were 'laid.' Their case was proving to be similar to the stats Grissom had read upon. All the men in their investigations were in their twenties, were expected to be strong and get in as many women's pants as possible. Luckily John Frank was an exception.

"John we can't thank you enough for allowing us to talk with you today. Would you like something to drink before we get started?" Sara's voice was soft and soothing, she had a knack with dealing with rape victims, and Grissom could only hope that she was never one of them.

"I'm fine, if you don't mind I would like to get this over with." John Frank, a twenty one year old male who still lived with his parents, was an obvious jock to most. One could tell that his rape experience must have turned up the signal to broadcast his masculinity as Sara noticed a new tattoo on his right forearm. The flesh was still red, and the tattoo branded him with the words of a "badass." Sara knew that inside, he was far from strong.

"No problem. John, one of the things we have had a hard time with was the lack of evidence on the case. We were unable to find any DNA she should have left behind at the scene, and there wasn't any on you during the examination." Sara jotted down something in her notebook before waiting for John to proceed.

"She wore one of those female condoms...I uh could feel it. Umm...She wore a black stocking over her head, but I did see some blond hair sticking out of her mask." John shifted in his seat, as his hands started to shake. Grissom didn't blame the man for being scared or even embarrassed, female rape was a rather taboo subject still in present society.

"Could you see what color her eyes were?" Sara gently pressed on, hoping to make progress.

"I think they were blue... But I can't be sure."

"How did she get into your bedroom John? Were the windows locked?" Sara asked.

"I don't know...She got in while I was asleep. I do remember closing the window, but I can't recall if I locked it..." John rubbed his hand over his face to wipe the sweat beads that seemed to form more and more after every question. "Listen I tried to call for help but she duct-taped my mouth shut and threatened me with a gun. She beat me up quite a bit before hand to, if it wasn't for my mouth being taped I'm pretty sure everyone on the whole damn street would have heard."

"Do you remember what type of gun she had? Was it big...small?" Sara questioned, as Grissom continued to merely be an observer.

"No...I don't know." John seemed to be further embarrassed at his inadequate amount of retained information.

"Thank you for your help John, a police officer will be in here in a couple of minutes to take your statement. If you remember anything just give us a call." Sara was about to get up, when John quickly grabbed her hand.

"Look, I just don't want word of this getting out. If anyone finds out about this I will be beaten up for the rest of my life, probably kicked out of my fraternity... I have a reputation. I just want this broad caught before she does this to another guy."

"There's no one who wants this woman taken off the streets more than us John." Sara gave the young man a reassuring smile as she thanked him one more time and left the room. Grissom followed her and breathed a sigh of frustration once they were in the hallway.

"Sometimes the evidence is all we can go on. The only problem is, I'm struck with an absence rather than abundance. We have nothing to go on other than the confirmation of theories we have speculated on. This woman comes into young males homes, rapes them and then leaves. The only problem is, she is bringing violence into her game and now who knows how much longer she will leave survivors behind to tell her story." Grissom lowered his head in temporary defeat as Sara seemed to deflate with exhaustion. If they were going to catch this rapist, he had to stop analyzing the rapes from a male's perspective.

What would make a woman rape twenty different men? The answer would lead to her apprehension.

The team hoped the answers would come fast, before murder was added to the list.

TBC-

Please review, I love to see what you think! Many thanks ;)


	3. Chapter 2: Fresh Blood

**A/N:** A special thanks goes to my Beta Unspoken. Again, you've helped so much! And thanks to the great reviews, they've really motivated me with this story. More to come soon.

Chapter 2

**Femme Fatale**

Life was not all that it was cracked up to be. At a young age, Sarah DeBauch learned to loath those who led a perfect life. At the age of ten she watched in horror under her mother's bed, as her mom was raped and murdered. Everything had happened so fast, and most of it she didn't understand. Like a coward she watched it happen, and like a coward she couldn't remember his face. She knew his face was covered with a black stocking, but what she refused to believe was that identification was next to impossible. The police questioned her many times, but she would always have the same answer.

She didn't know.

It was the answer that she wanted every man to have after she was finished with them. They didn't deserve to have the same dignity and fearlessness her mother's rapist had had. How dare they think they could lead a normal life after what they did? In Sarah's eyes every man had one thing in common: the capacity to rape her mother. Any one of the men out there, in the world could have done the evil deed. Sarah hoped that every rape she committed, she would get closer and closer to torturing the man, who had done so to her only caregiver.

It was because of him she had to lead a life full of loneliness and defeat. She had tried to find true love, but every man was only interested in one thing: getting into her pants. Until she met a man who would love her for herself and not her body, she would continue to ravish upon the male population. She held no mercy, and she knew that the time would come when she would end their pitiful lives once and for all.

She now not only held the need to physically humiliate and degrade the men she found, but she needed to see their blood. She had seen her mother bleed to death, and true satisfaction would only come once she saw their blood as well.

The victims age didn't even matter now, even if he was too young to have raped her mother, he was still a man, and still capable of doing it to another woman.

She needed to kill and seek vengeance, only then could she lead a normal life.

Only then could she be at peace.

**XxxX**

"Grissom, there's been another hit and you were right...she's escalated." Brass sighed and watched patiently as Grissom took in all the new information rather slowly. He was alone in his office, and in the middle of some deep thoughts regarding the case. In a way he was fortunate she had struck again, as they may be able to find some new evidence. However, he felt slightly saddened for another victim who was most likely tortured before his death.

"Where?" Grissom rose, much like a priest in a church, ready to deliver his weekly sermon, as he waited for Brass' response.

"Gather your crew and follow me."

The crime scene, for the exception of blood, looked the same as all of the others. The perp broke in through a window in the bedroom, and then raped the victim before committing the vile act of murder.

"Rape and murder." Sara obviously noted while looking at the young corpse on the bed.

"Done with a great amount of passion. The killer had a lot of anger inside of her." Grissom noted, as he examined the blood spatter on the walls.

"Any theories Gris?" Warrick questioned while snapping a photo.

_The victim fell asleep in his bed, after a long day at work. He's new on the job, fresh out of college and needs his rest for the long working days ahead of him. _

_As he dreams of the morning to come, our serial rapist lurks outside of his window. She most likely followed him home from work and checked out the parameter for any windows._

_She opens the window without ease, probably he never locked it. She enters the room without awaking our victim. _

_As she begins to tape his mouth shut and bound his hands with duct tape;, that is when he wakes up and realizes he is too late. As she begins to unclothe him, she takes pride in knowing she is dominant. When the rape begins, she whispers degrading thoughts into our victim's ear, to further dehumanize him._

_To her, the act is not about sex, it's about humiliation. Most likely in her past, she or someone close to her was raped; she still holds a lot of anger inside of her for not being able to talk about it._

_As her anger towards our vic grows stronger, so does her need to take her act one step forward. As she holds the knife against his throat, she relishes in his begging for life, before she commits the deed. As she continues to stab at his lifeless body, she allows herself to let go of some of the anger that has consumed her...Only for it to grow stronger. _

_Next time she would torture her victim longer._

"Nice theory, can you back that up with some evidence?" Ecklie's voice made the entire team grow stiff, except Grissom.

"Always nice to know that our trusty deputy director is around when we need a hand. Say Ecklie, you wanna slap on some gloves and help us out, or did you forget how to do that as well?" Grissom sarcastically replied. He couldn't help but feel bitter at his rude interruption.

"I'm busy. I just came by to see how things were going. I need to give something to the media, I don't want to rush you guys, but I need some evidence to feed to the press." Ecklie brushed back the few strands of hair he had upon his head as he sighed a sigh of exasperation.

"We can be rushed, I can be rushed... but the evidence can never be rushed." Grissom stated, as he went back to work and ignored Ecklie's huffs of objection, before he left the scene.

"I found something!" Sara eagerly held up a short blonde hair with a pair of tweezers. Grissom rewarded her with a smile, which was only reserved for her.

"Nice work, I'm going to rush this to DNA. Catherine, you're in charge." Grissom yelled, as he ran out of the house and ducked under the crime scene tape.

He was officially in a rush now that the evidence had come to him, at its own pace.

TBC...

I'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter ;)


	4. Chapter 3: Nominatim

**A/N: **Thanks again to my beta Unspoken. The more research I conduct the more I'm surprised at how many female rapists there are in North America alone. The sad part is, 99 of males never speak up about the crimes committed against them. More to come VERY soon.

Chapter 3

**Femme Fatale**

They still had no evidence; she only left behind one hair and no fingerprints which were her own. This case was a mystery.

As Grissom finally sat down in his fully worked in office chair, he began to feel the affects of the case. Since the Femme Fatale Rapist had started her ritualistic rapes and now murders, Grissom had only received a few hours of sleep. He always sent Sara home early, but he neglected his own needs. He couldn't stay fully alert without sleep, and as he head bobbed to the silent rhythm of time, Grissom knew he needed a break.

"You know even good looking supervisors deserve a rest once and a while. Besides, I miss you beside me." Sara leaned against the doorway to Grissom's office and appeared genuinely worried. She flashed him a warm smile before entering and closing the door, for privacy.

"The best is he who calls men to the best. And those who heed the call are also blessed. But worthless who call not, heed not, but rest." Grissom smiled as he finished his quote, feeling slightly excited by the seductive look in Sara's eye. He had neglected her to say the least, yet she was still understanding. She knew how important this case was to the entire team, there was never an objection to a decline on romantic evenings. However, she did miss them greatly, and Grissom wouldn't object to a brief romantic office interlude. Besides, the door was locked.

Grissom stared into Sara's eyes and displayed the lingering hunger for her that struck right to her heart. She knew that look of need anywhere.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Sara devilishly smiled, as she walked over to his chair and sat on his lap.

"What do you think is on my mind?" Grissom huskily asked, not getting a response but a deep, hard kiss. Their tongues tangled for several minutes before Grissom took the liberty of removing his shirt. Sara took her time in feeling every inch of his chest, like she had seen it for the first time before returning her lips to his.

He let out a muffled moan as he felt her undoing his belt. Should they be doing this here? They should be worried about the case, not their own personal needs. He knew it was a mistake, but it was one mistake that felt "oh so good."

**XxxX**

Sara giggled, as Grissom quickly straightened out the wrinkles in his golf shirt while they made their way down the hall. Even if their interlude wasn't entirely professional, it seemed to relax Grissom. As he put his hand lovingly around her back, they entered the DNA lab and were surprised to find the rest of the team already there.

"What were you two up to?" Catherine suspiciously asked, knowing that Grissom's door had been locked for over a half an hour.

"We were just going over some evidence. Any results yet?" Grissom asked without feeling slightly embarrassed.

"Another dead end. Wendy says that the DNA she extracted from the hair is not in the database." Nick sighed, as Wendy shrugged her shoulders.

"Sorry guys, better luck next time." Wendy consoled the team before going back to the pile of work before her.

As the team left the lab they all got a page at once.

**"Press conference in 15 minutes: Need Grissom and Catherine. Others watch. - Ecklie" **

"Great, just what we should be doing." Nick protested as the team made their way to their Tahoes.

"To inform the public is an asset Nicky. Some of Vegas, is still not taking this rapist seriously. And now that she has escalated, we have to warn the public to lock their windows, despite the heat." Grissom narrowed his gaze at the young CSI as they got into the vehicle, succumbing to the heat.

As the team arrived on scene at police headquarters, they were swarmed with reporters and other news personnel who were trying to be the first to get some answers. The scene reminded Grissom of a pack of wolves struggling to be the first to get a piece of meat.

Ecklie was the first to order some officers to escort the team into the press room promptly.

"Gil I want you to be the first to speak today, everyone is waiting for your thoughts and opinions on this delicate matter. Usually when you speak to them they settle down, and the public feels more secure." Ecklie announced, as he guided Grissom over to the podium which all eyes of the press were focused on.

"Good afternoon. As some of you may be aware of, I'm Gil Grissom, a criminalist from the Las Vegas Crime lab. I'm here today to tell you that everyone should be taking precautions in light of recent events. Windows should be locked at all times, as well as doors. Please have someone walk with you at the end of the night so you're not alone." Grissom paused long enough for the entire room of the press to jump up and question his brief statement all at once.

"Rick Murphy, Las Vegas Mirror- the public seems to think of this serial rapist as a big joke. How many serial rapists are there and how rare is it?"

"I can only stress that this is a matter not to be taken lightly. She is a severely dangerous woman who is capable of performing acts just as much as a man could. She has raped twenty one victims and now has killed her first. She will not stop until we catch her, and our team is trying our very best at taking her off the streets." Grissom felt a trickle of sweat dripping down his forehead as the various lights in the room, began to overwhelm the cool breeze of the air conditioning.

"Mr. Grissom, Tom McCullon- Las Vegas Post, what is your profile of the Femme Fatale? What would drive a woman to such lengths?" The reporter asked, while holding up his microphone.

"She is most likely a young woman between the ages of twenty and thirty. She may have blonde hair, and severe low self esteem. She most likely was, or witnessed someone close to her being raped therefore, she holds the need to seek revenge. She is a sadistic individual who does not care for human life, but for the feeling of over powering men. The acts are not about sexual pleasure but about sexual dominance."

"Mr. Grissom- Do you think she'll ever be caught or is she outsmarting your entire lab?" A man, clearly not apart of the press rose out of the crowd, obviously angry and searching for answers. "My son is dead because you couldn't catch this bitch, and all you can do is attend a press conference to sooth the public's worries?" Chris Hoggard, the father of the most recent murder and rape victim, held back tears and demanded for an explanation. Grissom thought it was his right and told security to back off.

"Mr. Hoggard, I can only say that my team and I have been working around the clock to take this serial rapist and murderer off the street. I will tell you this, she cannot be smart enough to cover every ounce of evidence. She could leave behind anything: a hair or a fiber and eventually we will find out who she is. No one can outsmart the evidence." Grissom's speech seemed to create a wave of silence over the crowd and the grieving father. He slowly stepped away from the microphone, believing that he had given an adequate amount of information, before handing the questioning over to Catherine.

He couldn't take too much of the press, even though he knew the public had the right to know what was going on.

"You alright?" Sara quietly asked as she tried to tune out Catherine's round of questioning in the background.

"I'm fine, I guess I'm just dreading the next time my beeper goes off. There's a rapist and a murderer out there and I can't do anything about it." Grissom sighed, trying to remain objective.

"Listen, we're going to find her, the evidence will appear soon enough. There's always a clue remember?" Sara grinned, as she put a supportive arm around him.

"The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence." Grissom quoted, as he looked onto the room filled with press once more.

One could only hope that the evidence would appear soon, before another teen took a permanent absence on life.


	5. Chapter 4: My Pain Will be Your Pain

**A/N: **Once more thanks to my beta **Unspoken**! In this chapter you may notice similarities in names... You'll see what I mean. It's all done for a reason. I'm going to be on vacation in Florida for one week, when I get back I will post another chapter. Beware of the next one!

Chapter 4

**Femme Fatale**

The words still echoed though her head and now it was impossible to get to sleep. How dare he presume that she would make a mistake. She had covered all the bases, she had her face covered for impossible identification and she wore gloves at all times.

The nerve of that bastard.

_"She cannot be smart enough to cover every ounce of evidence. She could leave behind anything: a hair or a fiber and eventually we will find out who she is."_

As Sarah threw one large coffee mug at an adjacent wall, she was rewarded with the echoing sound of porcelain on cement.

He insulted her intelligence, an act that no one ever got away with.

"Gil Grissom, soon you're going to regret those words. And I look forward to our first meeting." She laughed to no one, as she continued to talk amongst herself, relishing in the silence of her darkened apartment.

**XxxX**

The ringing woke Grissom and Sara out of their much needed slumber. They had just gotten off of their shift three hours ago, hardly enough time to eat and have a solid sleep.

Without hesitation, Grissom leaned over to his bedside table and answered the phone.

"Grissom"

"Hey Gil, its Brass. Sorry to wake you, but we've got a 4-19 over at the University, raped and murdered." Brass' voice sounded defeated and full of sorrow. The department was doing everything in their power to catch the Femme Fatale, but every scene had less evidence than the last.

"Don't wake the others I can do this on my own, call for someone from days to help. We may need it." Grissom hung up the phone and turned over to Sara who was still in a sleep deprivated daze.

"Who was that?" Sara yawned, as she forced herself to roll over and face Grissom.

"Another hit unfortunately."

"I can be ready in ten minutes" Sara yawned once more as she struggled to get up off of the bed.

"No- you're staying here. I need everyone fresh for tomorrow." Grissom gave Sara a gentle smile, before finding a clean pair of pants.

"What about you?"

"I've ran on less sleep, it won't kill me." Grissom gave Sara one last kiss, before heading out of the townhouse and into the painfully bright daylight.

For Grissom, his day started early and never ended, today, apparently would be no different.

**XxxX**

"What do we have?" Grissom was in full CSI mode, ready to conquer the case before him. This was the Femme Fatale's 22 victim; it seemed that she could run on little rest as well. A commonality he wished they did not share.

"Anthony Russel, 21 a sophomore, found raped and murdered in his dorm." Brass waited for further questions from the CSI, but instead got a look of disappointment. "Don't be so down, we did find someone who managed to get more than a look at our suspect." Brass smiled as Grissom's eyes sparkled in wonder.

"Who?"

"Kirsten Renaldi, girlfriend, or should I say, _ex_-girlfriend of our vic. She came in to check on Russel and found a woman attacking her boyfriend. She ran over to defend him and got a nice slash on her forehead before scaring her off. She's refused medical treatment and devastated, to say the least."

"Where is she?" Grissom searched the room until she saw the young woman leaning against the wall. Tears were still streaming down her face, and she didn't even acknowledge Grissom's presence as he introduced himself.

First witness, first suspect, Grissom thought as he made his way over to the young girl.

"I would like to ask you a few questions if I may?" Grissom politely asked, and got a mere nod of co-operation.

"I would like to talk away from here, if that's alright. It's just...I don't think I can take being in here much longer." She sobbed, as another set of tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Where would you feel most comfortable?" Grissom asked, trying to keep his voice soft to sooth the victim.

"If I may, I would really like to get some tea. My mom used to make me some when I was feeling bad." She tried to clean off some of her tears as she walked with Grissom towards the exit of the dorm.

"I'm ready and willing to work boss!" Greg eagerly popped in front of Grissom and Kirsten, causing both of them to jump.

"Greg, why are you here?" Grissom asked, feeling quite lucky at the young CSI's presence.

"I heard on the radio there was a 4-19 at LVU, and since I live just down the street I figured you would be needing some extra hands." Greg held his silver CSI field kit in one hand and a camera in his other. Grissom merely shook his head and told the CSI to inform the day shift of his presence.

He didn't want to know why Greg was listening to a police scanner, rather than resting up for his next shift. Grissom could only prey that Greg Sanders wasn't going to become as work obsessed as Sara once had in her earlier days at CSI.

With one final eager wave from Greg, Grissom and the witness walked slowly to his car in silence. He needed to earn the trust of a victim that had seen more than anyone ever had of the Femme Fatale.

"They took your statement?" Grissom asked.

"Yes, I believe Captain Brass did." Kirsten pushed a loose strand of brown hair behind her ear as she shielded her eyes to the sun. "There's a coffee shop just over this hill." Kirsten wiped her eyes once more with a Kleenex and gently blew her nose.

"How long were you and Russel together?" Grissom questioned, fully aware that the answer would bring another round of tears.

"It's a long story, but we've only been together a couple of days. We've been friends for quite a while though." Kirsten answered, not surprising Grissom with another round of tears.

Just then a crowd of students ran out from the dorms and made Grissom immediately curious.

"What's going on?" Grissom yelled.

"Oh man! Like, someone pulled the fire alarm and like, all of the dorms have been evacuated. The sprinklers went off too so like all our like stuff is like wet!" The rather ditsy, young college girl got immediately distracted when her cell phone rang.

"Yeah! Like W.T.F! I know!" She screamed into the phone causing Grissom to wince.

In all the chaos, he nor Kirsten, didn't even notice the young woman in a black trench coat, come up behind them. Her intentions weren't murder this time, it was something far less.

As Grissom watched the scene unfold, panic over took him. His crime scene! Evidence may be washed away, even though every scene had very little to go on in the first place.

With the swarms of students bumping into him and his potential suspect, he didn't even notice the small hand which took his wallet from his back pocket.

With a small smirk and a wink, the young woman in the black coat called out.

"See you soon Grissom."

It was too noisy for him to have heard an air horn let alone her voice, if only he had heard his name, perhaps he would have turned around. Maybe then he could have stopped the next events from happening. It was too late, he would soon be under her spell and there was nothing anyone could do about it.

**XxxX**

"Please tell me you were able to find something probative before the sprinklers went off." Grissom winced as Greg and most of the staff from day shift stood in the parking lot dripping wet.

"We found a letter addressed to you, it was on the victim's desk. We have no idea what it means." Greg handed the evidence bag over to Grissom, who looked at it with a heightened interest.

The letter merely said a few but powerful words, and the fact that it was addressed to him made it even more confusing.

**"Grissom, meus poena ero vestri poena._"_**

****"What does it mean?" Greg questioned, knowing Grissom could come up with answer.

"It's Latin." Grissom swallowed hard before continuing. "For, 'my pain will be your pain.'"

With that statement the entire line of investigators stared at Grissom in disbelief, with the realization that he was next.

TBC

I'd love to hear what you thought about this chapter. Every little bit helps. ;)


	6. Chapter 5: Lost and Stolen

Chapter 5

**Femme Fatale**

**A/N: **Sorry this took so long. This chapter was long and very hard to write. As you will find out, it dealt with issues I haven't gotten into within previous stories. Thanks again to** Mel **for betaing! The next chapter is in the works- it's another difficult one.

"I called this meeting so everyone could be brought up to speed. What do we know?" Grissom waited for one of his team members to offer an answer, but all he got were worried expressions in return.

"I heard what happened Griss, she wants you to be her next victim?" Sara held back the tears that were forming in her eyes. She knew that if she didn't ask the question someone else would, and she had a right to know more than anyone. She needed to know the truth, which he had avoided since he had picked her up for work.

"If I worry it gives her more power. Nothing is going to happen to me." Grissom rubbed his forehead, trying to shake off the hunger headache pressing through his temple. Since leaving the crime scene this morning, he had nothing to eat. Lately this case over took his own well being.

"This is serious Grissom! You know how dangerous she is... and smart. She's outsmarting all of us every time she commits another murder!" Sara raised her voice and noticed the uncomfortable expressions of the rest of the team. Her conversation was getting way too personal for a professional case discussion, and she was already contemplating about leaving the room. This was only going to get worse.

"She is NOT smarter then us Sara." Grissom yelled while he rose from his chair and looked down at her, with a sense of anger and disappointment.

"Fine." Sara gave Grissom one last look before leaving the room.

Grissom watched her leave and his gaze regretfully lingered towards the door long after she left.

"What evidence do we have?" His voice was much quieter than his recent outburst, as he sat back down in his seat and tried to focus.

"The blonde hair we recovered from the Haggard murder did not prove useful just yet. There was nothing in the database to compare the DNA too. As for prints, all we have are smooth glove imprints on the windows and window frames. She could be using leather or latex, too hard to tell at this point." Catherine said, not bothering to bring up any of her worries for Grissom's well being.

"As for witnesses, all we have are the victims, most of which refuse to talk. Several men accounted that she wore a black mask and one victim thought he had seen blonde hair poking out during his attack. The account would explain the blonde hair we recovered from one of the scenes." Nick passed the conversation over to Greg who looked just as somber as the rest of the team.

"Then there's the note in the last murder. It's typed, but I took it to QD for analysis." Greg said, as he slumped further into his seat. The weight of the case was literally pushing down on him.

"Alright. My guess is that we're dealing with a highly educated woman between the ages of 20 to 30. She obviously knows Latin and has experienced rape or was close to someone who had. She's frustrated, alone and is seeking revenge. She chooses her victims randomly and her habit is becoming more and more frequent. She kills her victims with a knife to make the killing more personal. She may live or teach at the University, as most of the murders occur in or around that area. Put out more warnings to the school, I'll be in my office." Grissom packed up his reports and notes and tried not to flee when he heard the clicks of Catherine's heels approaching.

"She is only looking out for you, you know. I don't blame her; I don't want to see you hurt." Catherine put a well manicured hand on Grissom's shoulder and flashed him a weak smile.

"Well, I'd rather her focus on the case and not the scare tactics the rapist is trying to dish out." Grissom gave Catherine one last hard stare that signaled for her to back off, before leaving the conference room. This was one battle she wasn't going to win.

For Grissom's sake she hoped the scare tactics were just that, and nothing more lethal.

**XxxX**

"That will be seven-seventy five." The fast food employee announced. Normally Grissom would rather eat baby food than consume a burger and fries, but today was an acceptation. He casually reached into his back pocket and quickly became alarmed.

"Where's my wallet?" Grissom questioned aloud, hoping that someone would know the answer.

_Maybe it's in the car..._

As Grissom excused himself, he lightly jogged out of the fast food joint and towards his car. As he opened the drivers side and rustled through the glove compartment where he was not rewarded with the treasure he sought.

_Crap, there goes dinner. _

There could still be the slight chance that he left his wallet at home, he was in a hurry to get to work this morning. Lately his lack of sleep could be messing with his mind. If not, he wouldn't be buying a hamburger anytime soon.

**XxxX**

"Have you seen my wallet?" Grissom asked, as he walked into their bedroom and noticed a large pile of clothes on the floor and several suitcases lying on the bed. "What's all of this?" He asked, trying to stay calm. Apparently he had bigger things to worry about than his wallet.

"I've decided to go back to my place until this case is solved. I think we need sometime apart." Sara walked right by Grissom to open his dresser and take out two of her shirts.

"Why are you doing this?" He hoarsely asked, feeling every ounce of emotion get stuck in one question.

Sara stopped her packing, and locked her eyes with his. Her heart sped up as the question seemed to echo in the air.

"You need to reevaluate the last ten hours. You've got the day off from Ecklie to look over case files, I suggest squeezing in some time to think about us." Sara continued to stare into Grissom's eyes and was only slightly pained by the tears forming within his two dark blue orbs. Perhaps her action was too extreme, but she couldn't be around Grissom now, not with the unexpected turn the case had dished out. She knew she would just get in the way and continue to badger him about a problem he could do nothing about. He couldn't take away the letter, but he could take himself off of the case. She asked him over and over again to remove himself from the investigation before it was too late, and was rewarded with a blank stare and a cold shoulder. He didn't want her around and she didn't need anymore hints. Her action would be best for both of them.

"I see. You're letting her scare tactics work on you now." Grissom coldly acknowledged before throwing the rest of her clothes out of his dresser, unable to look at her any longer. Little did she know, he needed her more than ever. He just couldn't bear talking about a case which he was unable to solve, he felt as if he were failing the entire team and the victims. Worst of all, he felt as if he let down Sara in someway; she needed to know he would be alright and he couldn't give her an answer.

"This is best for both of us. I'll call you later." Sara scooped up the rest of her clothing and shoved them into her suitcase. It was only a matter of seconds before she walked out of his door, leaving Grissom lost in his thoughts and pondering how to get rid of the pain in his heart.

He screwed up.

Minutes turned to hours, and as Grissom laid on his couch looking through case files, his loneliness only grew larger. It was only ten hours before shift and he had nothing new to tell his team. ,let alone Sara. Perhaps an apology would mend this situation that had spiraled out of control? For months he had gotten accustomed to her soothing scent and the warmth of her body. When he was stressed she knew exactly how to calm him down. What he would give just to hold her and embrace all of her charms for just a minute, he would be clear minded for the day ahead of him.

Now, all he could think of was her, and it was becoming a problem. Feeling frustrated, he gingerly walked across to a white cabinet in his kitchen and pulled out a half a bottle of vodka. Normally he wasn't a drinking man; the last time he drank was after Sara got suspended a year ago. She had told him so much about her life and her problems, and he had given her nothing in return except for his hand. He could have started their relationship then, instead he shielded himself from her desire to be loved.

He screwed up.

Grissom plopped himself on his sofa once more, this time with a drink in his hand, eagerly waiting to forget his problems. As he swallowed down some of the old, bitter vodka his mind started to grow numb to emotion and all he could feel was the need to have another glass.

Today was one of those days where vodka was necessary. As he finished off the rest of the bottle, Grissom found him self unable to move. Officially he had succumbed to the relaxation hard liquor had to offer and took the opportunity to catch up on his sleep. As the sandman cast its spell, that's when he heard it.

**BANG**

Grissom's reaction was slow, but eventually he took notice. The noise may have come from outside, it could just be the wind. He smirked slightly at his clichéd hypothesis and knew for sure that his drinking had temporarily consumed his brain cells.

**BANG**

Now it was time for Grissom to investigate. Something could have just fallen over in his room; Sara was rummaging around a lot. It could be anything. Grissom struggled to get off of the couch and grabbed onto its frame for support. Once he turned around that's when he saw it.

A figure dressed in black ran across the hallway and into his bedroom or the bathroom. It was too dark to tell, but Grissom knew he wasn't hallucinating.

He wasn't that drunk.

Maybe it's Sara...

His thought quickly faded as he heard the click of a gun. It sounded like his. He had barely made his way out of the living room when she made her move; she was quick, Grissom would give her that much.

"I wouldn't move Grissom." The figure said aloud, a black mask covering its identity. The voice belonged to a woman, and in an instant Grissom knew that things were not looking good. His heart was pounding out of control, his breathing was labored and he could already feel a shot of adrenaline working its magic. He had to get out of there. The alcohol was coming on stronger now that he was standing, and he knew he would not be able to put up much of a fight. What a night to start drinking.

"You should have kept you're mouth shut and maybe I wouldn't be here." She said as she slid closer to Grissom. He was unable to move as the pistol continued to be pointed directly to his chest. Words were Grissom's only defense.

"Why me?" Grissom asked. It was a struggle, but he had managed to think of a coherent sentence. He winced as she was now a few feet away, he wasn't going to win this battle.

"You said I would fail, no body, especially a mere man could talk that way about me and not be punished for it." She spat back, now holding the gun against Grissom's temple. His knees started to shake in fear, but he kept his expression calm, not allowing her to see how much her presence bothered him.

"Did somebody close to you get raped and murdered? Is this what this is about? Was it your father? Please don't allow the violence to continue for the purpose of revenge." Grissom's words seemed brave, but he knew his act wouldn't be believable to her. She obviously had no regard for the emotions of others, only herself. She gave other men the pain she felt inside of her, she obviously wasn't going to stop until she got caught.

"It was my mother!" She yelled into Grissom's face, and he already regretted his question as he felt a painful punch in his stomach. All of the air was sucked out of his lungs in an instant, and now he was struggling to breathe. As he felt the world around him spinning out of control, he dropped to the ground, the sound of his body clashing to the floor echoing through the room. The noise seemed to please her.

"Feel good Grissom?" She laughed aloud, before kicking him in his side. "Wondering where your wallet went?" She knelt down to Grissom's face, enjoying the tears flowing down his cheeks from the pain.

"Please..." Grissom wheezed, trying to stay conscience.

"Please what?" She kicked him again, enjoying the scream of pain that evoked from his lips. "I love that noise, it's the noise that lets me know I'm in charge. You're going to pay for what you did to my mother." She kicked Grissom one last time before getting out her knife to polish. As she temporarily distracted herself, Grissom fought to breathe. As he managed to inhale a small amount of air, he rubbed a finger over his bleeding lip, soaking it in blood. As she continued to polish her knife, humming a melody that was far too sadistic for Grissom's liking, he forced himself to write a message on the floor. Once the words were formed he was rewarded with another punch.

"I'm sorry; I just missed hearing your screams." She laughed as she grabbed his arms and dragged him down the hall. Blood managed to trail the entire length of her journey, before reaching her destination...His bedroom.

"So this is where the big CSI sleeps huh? I notice you don't have a girl. Well tonight's your lucky night. One last roll in the hay before rolling off to sleep for good." She threw him on top his bed, hearing a painful moan in response. He needed to do something, he felt helpless. This couldn't be the end, there was so much more he wanted to do and see.

The woman laughed once more as Grissom tried to get up, she merely pinned him down with one hand. He was too weak to fight back, too weak to object as the knife in her hand ripped his shirt off of his body.

"You're going to know exactly what my mother went through you bastard." She spit at his face before slicing off his belt.

"I didn't—-do---anything---to...h---er." Grissom forced with all his might to snap her out of her contrived hallucination. If she was reliving what it would be like to kill and rape her mother's killer, she had no true sense of reality.

"Shut the fuck up. The only thing I want to hear are your screams and your begging, when I take all your dignity away." She yelled as she threw his belt across the room. She was still clothed, wanting him to be naked, to fully dehumanize him. Grissom's heart sank once more as he realized there was nothing he could do to stop her. He just wished he could live long enough to say goodbye to Sara, he loved her and he hoped deep down that she would never forget him. Another tear rolled down his cheek as he felt the knife lightly brush against his thigh as she sliced through his pants and boxers at the same time.

This was not how Grissom wanted to die; he wanted at least an ounce of dignity.

As Grissom finally felt the warmth of the fabric give away, he fought the urge to shield himself, out of instinct.

"Now let's get to the part where you beg shall we?" She pulled out a rope from her pocket and tied Grissom's hands to his head board.

There were a million things he wanted to say, none of them would ever free him from his fate. In a matter of minutes he was going to die.

The masked woman before him took off her mask, and to Grissom's surprise let him see her identity.

"I figured you worked so hard to find me, I may as well show you what I look like before you die. Surprised?" She grinned before eying Grissom over one last time. "Uncomfortable? You shouldn't be ashamed of your body Grissom, yours is one of the nicest I had the pleasure of kicking the shit out of. Too bad you fucked my mother before stabbing her to death huh?" Her grin turned into a frown as she tugged the mask back down over her face. As she slipped out of her pants, Grissom kept his eyes closed.

_Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. _ Grissom chanted in his head as he felt another punch to his stomach before feeling the weight of her body on top of his.

_It's too late..._

She laughed as she took everything innocent away from Grissom in one moment.

_I don't know. Most people want to die in their sleep...Never know that it's happening. _

"You like that? Fucking filth of the earth that's what you are." She whispered. The pain was too much, more then Grissom could have imagined. He felt more remorse for all of the other victims then he ever had.

She brought her knife to Grissom's throat and slid the blade down a long path before stopping. She didn't push hard enough to cause a serious wound, however the sting of agony graced Grissom once more.

_Like a crime scene. Surprise, you're dead. I'd prefer to know in advance that I was going to die. I'd like to be diagnosed with cancer, actually. Have some time to prepare. _

"Please stop." Grissom cried. He wasn't begging for him, he was begging for Sara.

_Go back to the rain forest one more time. Re-read 'Moby Dick.' Possibly enter an international chess tournament. _

"I don't—-think so." She groaned as she suddenly took him more forcefully. He couldn't take it anymore; he was beginning to wish she had killed him earlier. At least then he would have died in peace.

"You're going to suffer the hardest and the longest Grissom. I told you, nobody tells me what I can't do...Especially a man." She rose up off of Grissom and held the knife strong in her hand.

This was it...The end of Gilbert Grissom.

As her knife rose down, she hesitated.

"What did you say?" She asked, suddenly taken of guard.

Grissom struggled to remember what he had uttered aloud, while his mind was thinking a million things all at once.

"I--- Said...Goodbye Sara." He sobbed, feeling much like an infant. It was true, rape took away all dignity from its victims and Grissom was no different.

The phrase seemed to startle the Femme as she gave Grissom not a stab, but a hit in the head with the end of his gun.

A_t least have enough time to say good-bye to the people I love. _

And darkness dissolved over his eyes much like an antacid in water.

The end had come.

_I'm not ready to say goodbye._

**XxxX**

**TBC...**

Please let me know how you felt about this chapter ;)


	7. Chapter 6: Under her Skin

Chapter 6

**Femme Fatale**

**A/N: **Many thanks to all of the reviews and support! I got this chapter out because I know how it feels to wait for a chapter. Hope you enjoy it. The next one is coming! College is starting for me again on Sept 5th, but I'll still be writing, don't worry. Thanks again to **Mel** for the awesome beta.

**Hold your breath and count to four.  
Pinky swears don't work no more.   
Footsteps down the hallway floor,  
getting closer to my door. **

**-Billy Talent**

Sara stood outside Grissom's townhouse with regret and guilt. This was a time in Grissom's life where he needed her the most, and she had shut him out completely. It was only understandable that Grissom was feeling vulnerable, and intended to push her away. Perhaps she should have fought harder and stood by him.

Could he forgive and forget so easily?

_I'll apologize...and make it up to him before our shift._

Sara instinctively knew more than one way to apologize and could only hope that once her lips met his, they could put the whole mess behind them. She screwed up, nobody was perfect. Leaving the man she loved was the biggest mistake she had ever made, he was her entire life. Just one night alone from Grissom proved to Sara how much she needed him.

As she made her way up the steps of his townhouse, she debated whether to enter with her key or to knock.

_Maybe he won't let me in if he knows it's me. _ Sara thought, as she slid her key slowly into the lock. She was surprised when the door opened on its own; she didn't even turn the key. The eerie creaking of the door echoed through the living room, immediately Sara sensed that something was wrong.

"Grissom?" Sara yelled aloud and started to panic once the rest of the room came into focus. Even though she was still frozen in the doorway, she could already see the damage.

Blood.

The familiar scent of iron in the air flooded through Sara's nostrils and made her unable to move. The smell over the years became too common and made her realize that she may have lost him. The thought was too much to bear.

As Sara took in one last swig of air, she ran through the dark and empty home to seek out one face and one alone.

"Grissom!" She screamed once more, hoping that her cries would summon him from the darkness.

As she ran into the living room, that's when she saw it. In an instant she could taste the bile flooding to her throat, as she stared at the small formation of blood on the floor.

"I'm sorry. -G" was written in blood below her feet, a simple statement that threw Sara off of the edge. As tears flew down her face, she ran into the next room where the sight added more to her heart's ache.

Grissom's clothes were ripped off of his body and thrown at different parts of the room. Blood stains were apparent on every article of clothing.

The blood pool on the bed is what made Sara drop to her knees. He suffered so much and she wasn't there to protect him. It was her fault.

One fact still kept Sara from falling apart. He was missing, he could still be alive. The others were killed and left in their rooms. This attack was different.

"Please, let him be alive." Sara hugged herself as she continued to sob on the ground unable to move. Grissom's only hope was his team and their ability to find the evidence to save him.

Her hands shook as she reached into her jean pocket for her cell phone, she needed everyone here. If they got started right away there may still be a chance she could see him again.

Hope was not usually apart of Sara's existence, today it was all she had to keep her from dying inside. She would have to live with her mistake the rest of her life, she should have stayed.

**XxxX**

"Go home. And don't think you're staying there by yourself. I've ordered Greg to keep you company." Catherine continued to hold Sara in a long hug, as she reassured her that they were going to find him.

"I walked out on him Cath. It's my fault..." Sara sobbed into her shoulder, as the veteran CSI gently stroked her back, like a mother would to an infant.

"Don't go there. You didn't know this was going to happen. I promise the minute we find anything I will call day or night." Catherine released Sara from her embrace and gave her one last sympathetic smile. She knew that hope was grim, but she would do everything in her power to save Grissom. The team owed him everything.

As Sara walked out the door with the loving hand of Greg on her shoulder, the team went back to processing the scene. Day shift offered to take over due to the personal implications of the case; however, Catherine was determined to solve this one herself. There had to be one shred of evidence Grissom left behind besides the note to Sara. As Nick took another photograph of the bloody, he bit his lip to hold back his emotions. He needed his mind clear. Grissom had stayed professional during his abduction last year; Nick was not going to fall apart when his boss needed him the most. As he bent over to take a closer picture of the note, something caught his eye.

A chunk of hair, brown with frequent threads of gray rested on the ground. It didn't take a brain scientist to figure out whose hair was pulled out and adhering to the bloody stains of torture on the ground. Nick tried to keep his emotions in check once more, as he took a photograph and placed the hair securely within an evidence bag.

"I found more hair Cath." Nick sighed, as his hands trembled while writing a description on the evidence bag.

"We're all feeling it bro. Grissom didn't deserve any of this." Warrick grimly stated, as he took a photo of the blood trail from the living room to the bedroom.

"He's lost a lot of blood." Nick tried not to announce all of his worries, yet this fact was clear. Without medical attention Grissom would die. Unfortunately, they didn't know the extent of his injuries to create a frame of how much time they had left.

"The question we have to be asking ourselves is: Why Grissom? Why was he different? She saw value in him; he had something the others didn't." Catherine pushed her team out of their emotional gutter she was stuck in as well, and inspired them to think out of the box.

"Well for starters he's a CSI. He knows a lot about crime scenes. He has access to the lab." Nick guessed.

"He's older than the others. All of her other victims were under the age of thirty. What made Grissom targeted?" Warrick furrowed his brow as he contemplated this question.

As Catherine's mind raced of possible explanations, a sinking feeling rose in her gut. She knew the answer.

_"She cannot be smart enough to cover every ounce of evidence. She could leave behind anything: a hair or a fiber and eventually we will find out who she is. No one can outsmart the evidence."_

"He got under her skin." Catherine exclaimed, as stared off into another world while recalling the press conference which was held a few days back.

"How?" Warrick asked.

Catherine looked back at Nick and Warrick, as the ticking clock in her mind was counting down to the end of all hope.


	8. Chapter 7: Under Exposed

**A/N:** Thanks once more for all of your comments and support, it's helped me develop this story further. School has started today, but this week I promise another new chapter. **Unspoken**, thanks for the wonderful beating job once more.

Chapter 7

**Femme Fatale**

As Grissom wheezed on the ground for air, he noticed that he couldn't move his arms or legs. Was he paralyzed? The answer quickly came into focus once he realized that his limbs were tied back with rope. As he squirmed on the ground with all his strength, he wondered how he got there.

Candles were his only source of light and even from the dim perspective, he could tell he was in a cabin or shed. It was an extremely small living space with no windows; he couldn't make a door out either. Perhaps he couldn't see much due to the inadequacy of lighting. As he breathed, he could start to feel the extent of his injuries; blood was draining from him fast. He was beginning to feel numb as the onset of shock struck him once more. He liked it better when he was unconscious.

As he closed his eyes and lured himself to sleep, one question made his muscles tense.

"How did I get here?"

He didn't remember being tied up or beaten.

Then the harsh reality began to set in.

He didn't even remember who he was.

**XxxX**

_Grissom pulled Sara's hand and lured her towards the lake. It was mid afternoon and the heat was too intense to be playing these games, yet nothing seemed to bother him. It was their first vacation together as a couple and he seemed determined to enjoy every minute._

_"Grissom, I look like a wreck." Sara complained as his warm hand continued to cover hers._

_"You look beautiful, but I admit, you do look exhausted." Grissom smiled as he placed his hands over her stomach from behind her._

_"And who's to blame for that?" Sara looked up at Grissom and waited for a response. She could hear the camera's automatic timer continue to count down._

_"What can I say? You're irresistible even at 4am." Grissom laughed aloud and Sara flashed him a raised eyebrow, as the camera's shutter quickly opened and then closed. _

Sara let out a small grin as she continued to look at her favorite photo in her album. He always knew how to make her smile.

"Glad to see a smile Sara." Greg forced a grin of his own, as he sipped a cup of blazing hot coffee he had just poured straight from Sara's machine.

In an instant, her smile faded as she was brought back to reality. What she would give just to go back to that moment in time and never let him go. What kind of person would leave their loved one in a time of need?

She knew when she found him he would no longer want a relationship. If she was at fault for his abduction, a fact that she would have to live with.; why would Grissom want to continue a relationship with someone like her?

"I just keep on thinking that if I was there..." Sara tried to bite back her tears, but they flowed regardless of her efforts.

"You need to stop thinking that this was your fault and start believing that he is going to come home. We're going to find him." Greg walked over to Sara and wrapped his arms around her. Her sobs became more intense as she let all of her emotions out in one breath.

_"Please, let him be alright."_ Sara thought, as she buried her head into Greg's shoulder.

**XxxX**

"Nice to see that you're awake, Grissom." A familiar voice flooded the room as his eyes sought out its origin

"Who are you?" Grissom asked, not feeling fear towards the woman he once had.

"Yes I get it; you can't remember anything can you? How about this?" The Femme let out a laugh as she held a bloody knife in her hand.

"A knife?" The lack of fear in Grissom's question led the Femme to believe he was telling the truth. Perhaps her plan would now go more smoothly with this new development.

A test was in order.

"Yes, but you don't remember what you did with it do you?" She continued to show him the knife as he remained tied on the ground.

"I don't believe...I could..." His statement trailed off as he realized he didn't know anything, let alone who he was. He couldn't be making assumptions. Could he have used the knife to kill someone? To harm another? The thought still seemed too unlikely.

"You killed them with this. And you're latest victim was a fighter I'll give you that much." She laughed as she began to untie him quickly.

"Why did you tie me up?" He wondered, unable to think straight from his injuries.

"You went insane. Let me tell you this, you were fucked. I mean I've helped in your crimes before but these last ones really messed you up." She waited to untie the last knot as she read his reaction. Was he really going to buy all of this? After all, he was smart.

"I don't remember any of that. I just... don't think I could do something like..." Grissom's mind raced to make sense of the new information he was handed.

"Like what? Rape and murder? You're one of the most dangerous murderers and rapists in the country. If it wasn't for me you'd be sitting in a cell right now. If the cops catch you, you're getting the death penalty. Hey-- I got something for you." She took off her mask, and flashed Grissom a mischievous grin as she held up several packs of blood.

"How do you know what blood type I am?" He asked.

_I'm obviously not going to admit that I saw his blood card in his wallet. Then he would want to see his ID. He can't know who he is if this is going to work..._

An answer came to her in an instant.

"You think that your only girlfriend would abandon you in your time of need? I know more about you than your blood type." She held his hand to make the information as real as possible. It was hard enough to be nice to him, but to be his girlfriend would be a challenge. She could use him to her advantage after all; he had to remember something about evidence and investigation.

Grissom's heart lurched as the name suddenly came to his lips.

"Sara?"

Convenience indeed that her name was Sarah... Or was it a coincidence? Any man was hard to love for Sarah...Yet, the idea seemed to slightly appeal to her. Then again he was a asshole, like any other man who crossed her path. This act would just add to the torture she gave him already.

"Yeah at least you remember that. Here sit up on the couch I need to give you some blood or else you're not going to make it." She exclaimed as she helped him up on the couch. She didn't remember how badly she assaulted him. It all happened too fast. She didn't mean to almost kill him; she just had so much anger. Usually at night the anger hits her the hardest and takes over her mind. Grissom was the one man she had spent the longest time with. She was beginning to feel an emotion she hadn't felt in a long time: regret.

If she didn't break into the hospital last night and steal blood and medical supplies, he would be already dead. She already administered him some IV when he was unconscious.

Still regret flowed mighty strong, as she started to fill his veins with blood.

But as her mind raced back to the night of her mother's rape and murder, her anger returned. She was going to use Grissom to her advantage to get even with her mother's killer. He was out there somewhere and now they both won't rest until he was dead.

"When Grissom retrieves his memory he will be suffering more than he could ever imagine." Sarah thought devishly as she continued to hold his hand. She wasn't going to let any man into her heart, even one as innocent and caring as Grissom.

TBC...

Thanks for reading! Please review. ;)


	9. Chapter 8: Monsters in the Closet

Chapter 8

**Femme Fatale**

_Grissom ran through out the house, losing his breath as he searched out the source of his motivation. As he approached the bedroom, that's when he saw it; a small figure shaking in fear under the bed. This figure had no face but seemed physically terrified. He decided to play dumb and not notice. The element of surprise was far more endearing._

_As Grissom pretended to search around the room, he suddenly lurched forward towards the bed and grabbed the woman's hand. Her screams bounced off the walls while he dragged her out from under the bed._

_"Now I can do what I was brought here to do." Grissom said through his gritted teeth as he tried to hold the woman down. As he angled her more towards the moonlight which swept in through her blinds, her identity became clear._

_And that's when she woke up..._

Sara sprung out of her bed to try to shake off the dream. She hadn't had a nightmare in a while and what was worse, it was about Grissom. She knew of course how outlandish the dream had been, Grissom was a kind soul incapable of any wrong doing. What got her the most was that she was a victim and Grissom was the evil which she feared the most.

The Femme Fatale case had struck many emotional cords with Sara long before Grissom went missing. In college she was a victim of her professor's manipulation, she thought he was someone she could trust. For a long time she learned to trust no one, which caused damage on many of her personal relationships. Grissom was the first man she had met who made her feel safe, and of course she pushed that feeling away. She let her stubbornness get to her and in return pushed him away, before he was gone for good.

She walked into the living room and was comforted to see Greg still sleeping on the couch. He was a faithful friend who never left her side, too bad she couldn't have shown Grissom the same courtesy.

**XxxX**

"Anything new guys?" Catherine sighed as she lowered her head. The conference room was as quiet as a funeral, as the entire team looked each other over. Their dismal expressions provided little hope in Catherine's gut that they found anything probative. They had to keep trying; Grissom's life depended on their ability to interpret the evidence...Even if there were no pieces of the puzzle to interpret.

"Nothing? Well keep trying and don't worry about overtime. The sheriff knows about the situation and he is supporting us. He wants to find Grissom in one piece, just as much as us." Catherine sighed, as she picked up the explosion of folders lying on the table.

"Yeah he cares because to him, Grissom is money. Money to the lab and to the state." Nick retorted before getting up out of his seat.

Warrick calmed him down

"Does it really matter Nicky? At least we have everyone on our side. Let's just get Grissom back to us." Warrick patted his friend on the shoulder as he gave Catherine a supportive wink.

"I just feel that I let him down somehow. I should have found something." Nick tried to remain emotionally distant but failed.

"Grissom couldn't have saved your life without the help of the whole team." Catherine added and tried to give Nick an optimistic smile. "Don't give up, there's still time."

**XxxX**

Grissom's eyes fluttered open slowly at first, but as his vision became clearer, so did his iris. His eyes grew wide as he watched Sarah polish a large knife, as she sang an unfamiliar tune to herself. To Grissom, she seemed innocent and helpful to his aid. Although, as he watched her carryout what seemed to be a daily chore, he felt like a voyeuristic teen staring into his neighbor's next door window. He still had no feelings for the woman before him; his heart felt nothing but emptiness when he slept beside her. They had only shared in gentle touches and caresses, and Grissom never initiated them. Grissom sensed that something wasn't entirely right, and he was hoping to get to the bottom of his inhibitions tonight.

As Sarah's humming seized, she placed the knife lovingly down on her dresser, before turning her eyes to Grissom. His eyes searched hers for answers and all he received was emptiness.

_If we are together, why don't I see the love she should have in her eyes? _

As Grissom held his stare, a quote sprang to his mind

"I have looked into your eyes with my eyes. I have put my heart near your heart."

A feeling of confusion drifted into his mind. If he was a convict, a rapist and a murderer, why did he have random quotes popping into his brain? Why is it that his heart couldn't enable him to believe he could take a life? He didn't feel like a bad person, nor did he ever want to.

It was too much to keep inside.

"I think I should turn myself in." Grissom whispered, unable to hear his own confession.

"What?" The question had thrown Sarah completely off guard. Was he remembering the truth? How would he co-operate in her plan if he was fighting the whole way? She had to do something!

"You're just still recovering, don't think like that. You told me a perfect murder can only happen if you never get caught. You don't want to get caught!" She was struggling and she knew he could tell. She couldn't even make eye contact with him. What if he did remember what she did? What would she do? Kill him... No! She couldn't. Not now...He was not a victim now. He was becoming somehow much more. The fact that he would risk his own life, and turn himself in because, "it was the right thing", only made it harder for her anger to come back. She was changing. Somehow her other voice wasn't taunting her to carry on with her rapes and murders. Now that he was here, something was different.

"There is no such thing as the perfect murder. Everyone leaves something behind and eventually everyone gets caught." Grissom exclaimed, not believing his own words. He looked into her eyes and now saw raw fear. What did she have to be scared of?

"That's why I need you!" She blurted out, now feeling exposed. Damn it, now he would have more questions.

"Need me for what, Sarah? I am a bad person... A monster who doesn't deserve to live. What kind of a person is cold enough to not only take someone's life but take away their dignity in the process? If anything you should have let me die." Grissom could feel his hands shaking from the realization of what kind of a person he truly was. The statement caused for another thing in Sarah to snap, as she turned her back to him, unable to look into his eyes.

She was the monster; she was the one who deserved to die.

How did her life become so full of hate and death? She wasn't always this way.

She would never fall in love, never live a normal life. She blamed it on that one night where she lost her mother. She watched her die. She watched her torture. Yes, she had to carry on. It was too late to turn back. Normalcy was never apart of her life, nor will it ever be.

She turned around and faced the one man she had never got rid of. Sure she tried, but she could never throw him out to greet death like the others. He was different. He had gentility in his eyes, even when someone tried to tell him he was the complete opposite of kindness. Sarah was his true opposite in every way.

"Please just try. I need you." She allowed for one tear to fall down her cheek, surprising herself that she was no longer acting. She really did need his help if she was ever going to carry on and never get caught. It was inevitable. Maybe the sooner it happened, the better.

In the meantime, she would take Grissom to his first home to rape a woman. She would test him as gently as she could. Sarah needed to know that he would be with her when it came for her next attack. Someone by her side held an odd sense of comfort. Perhaps she longed for someone she could trust. Unfortunately, she had to take away Grissom's life in the process. Hopefully his team would give up on him by the time he recovered. She needed his help more than ever.

TBC...

Please let me know what you thought of this chapter. Don't worry...All is not lost!


	10. Chapter 9: Kisses of Thorns

**Chapter 9**

Femme Fatale

**A/N: **Thanks again to** Mel** for the fast beta! This chapter may make some people worried, but no fear! My stories always work out in the end with **GSR** and always things happen for a reason.

_"Mom can we play another game today?" Sarah asked hopefully. Her wide eyes looked up at her mother as she finished baking warm, chocolate chip cookies. It was never really made from scratch, always baked with pre-made dough. But to Sarah, it was homemade. Her mother was never really a good cook, but she always ate everything she baked. She was too nice to say somethings were really 'yucky'._

_"I suppose so. You're not planning to beat your mother again are you?" She laughed as she placed a cookie on a plate and gave it to her daughter._

_"No. I just love playing it." She stuck out her tongue playfully and giggled when her mother did the same. Her mother searched through out the living room for the Scrabble box and laughed when she found it under a pile of magazines._

_Her mother wasn't a good house keeper either. But none of her shortcomings as a chef or a housekeeper could ever take away Sarah's love. _

_"Ok you setup the board. And no cheating. I don't want to find extra letters hidden in your lap like last time." Her mother grinned as she shut off the oven. _

_As Sarah sat alone she took some of the letters out of the box and hid them in her pocket. It was a habit._

_"Ok! Lets get started." _

**XxxX**

Sara's hands shook as she made breakfast. It had been nearly five days now since Grissom went missing. Hope was as small as a grain of salt. Greg had practically moved into her apartment through the ordeal and Sara was beginning to feel guilty. She didn't want him to think it was his obligation to be there, she knew he had a life.

"You can go home whenever you want Greg. Go see your girlfriend." Sara tried to smile, but all she was able to muster was an upside down grin.

"What girlfriend? You're not holding me here Sara I know that. But I don't want to leave you alone. It's my decision. Once we find Grissom then I'll leave you two alone. Until then, I'm not going anywhere." Greg took the knife from Sara's hand and took over the chopping of peppers for their omelet.

Sara felt almost relieved. She didn't want to be alone, she was afraid that her mind may drift too far into the darkness. Grissom is her entire life, and she felt helpless not being able to do something.

"I think I should help with the investigation." Sara muttered, as she looked down at the hardwood floor beneath her feet.

"No...Sara...Ecklie has made it clear he doesn't want you anywhere near this case. He thinks you're too close now." Greg continued to chop the peppers in a fashion that resembled waves drifting in on an empty shore. The sound his chops made were far more rhythmical than an ocean, it now resembled an off key song in the first stages of production.

Somehow the chopping of food comforted Sara. It took her mind off of what she should really be thinking of.

"Don't worry I'm hands off... It was just a suggestion." She managed to grin finally at Greg's raised eyebrow.

"You just miss the team."

"Yeah I do." Sara flatly remarked.

"Alright. How about I invite them over for dinner. I'll cook." Greg smiled widely at the prospect of cheering Sara up.

Unfortunately, Sara had other intentions. She wanted to see all the crime scene photos from every murder. She could be hands off and still look at crime scene photographs. She just couldn't stand by and do nothing while Grissom could be dying or already dead.

**XxxX**

"You're looking better." Sarah said, as she mustered a smile. She never smiled... What was wrong with her?

"I feel better." He walked over to Sarah and looked her straight in the eye once more.

"So...Have you figured out what you would like to do." She broke the contact, as she sat down on the couch. Grissom soon followed. Sarah had been there for him through his entire recovery, she had held his hand through out all of his pain. And now, he was starting to see what he must have missed in her eyes. Love...

"Yes. I want to stay with you." His hand now rested on hers, with the promise of something more. She couldn't bear it. These past few days they had shared a lot. Grissom had no memory about his former life, but he did try and tell about his feelings. He still found it strange that he couldn't remember anything, She always felt her heart sink when she remembered what she had done to him.

She caused his pain and his memory loss. She had ruined his entire life in one night. Sarah knew a force possessed her that night. The same force that possessed her during all of the other attacks. All the voices she usually heard were dissipating and now she didn't want them to return. She feared what would happen when they did. Maybe Grissom was here to protect her from doing anything to anyone again.

"I uh... I wanted to thank you for all your help. Even though I didn't deserve it." He smiled. His boyish features making her guilt turn into something else. She could see it in his eyes too. He had feelings for her. What could she say?

Pure attraction brought her head closer to his, and he didn't back away. As their lips met in awkwardness, she let him guide her. She hadn't truly kissed a man...ever. Sarah had kissed a lot of men in her lifetime, however all of those were against a man's will.

As their tongues started to dance, Sarah couldn't help but break it off. It was wrong. Since when did she ever care about what was right?

"We can't..." She whispered.

"Why not?" Grissom searched her once more for answers and was left even more confused by her reply.

"Because... I don't deserve you." She kissed him on his forehead before retreating outside for the rest of the afternoon.

**XxxX**

"Thanks guys for coming. Sara really needed it." Greg announced quietly as he let the team in.

"How's she holding up?" Nick asked, holding onto a bag protectively.

"Good...I think. She still feels guilty for his disappearance." Greg led them into her kitchen as he prepared to set the table. Catherine helped Greg, giving him a pat on the back.

"It's nice that you're there for her Greg. She wouldn't be doing to good without you." Catherine smiled.

"You guys find anything?" Greg asked; hope still shining in his eyes.

"Nothing probative. This broad leaves nothing behind. Goes against one of our motto's that "everybody leaves something behind." Warrick's hollow eyes failed to reassure Greg that they would eventually find his boss. A realization that Sara hopefully wouldn't find out.

"Where is she?" Nick asked.

"She's in her room, been in there all day."

"I'll be back. I'll tell her dinner is ready." Nick left the room as quickly as he could and hoped attention wouldn't be drawn to his bag. No one had asked on the ride over why he had brought a knapsack and he was thankful for the lack in questions. Perhaps everyone was so engrossed with finding Grissom that they hadn't noticed.

A knock, broke the silence of Sara's room and she instinctively knew who it was.

She opened the door and smiled at the sight in front of her.

"Thanks for bringing them." Sara smiled.

"You know I could get fired for this, so hurry up and make your copies. I hope you find something we didn't though. I love the guy too you know..." Nick gave Sara one last hug before leaving Sara to her work.

"Hey, just make sure you come to dinner or everyone will start to worry." Nick warned her.

"Don't worry, this won't take long. And Nick... Thanks again." She gave him one last smile before rushing to make copies on her computer.

A photograph fell out of the file and made tears instantly come to her eyes. Grissom's blood lined his floors. She could see the blood trail leading into his bedroom; even through the glare on the photo was pretty intense from her lights above. She was going to set the picture down when something caught her eye.

She quickly made a note of what she found before going back to her task at hand. Her sighting could be nothing...Or it could be something that would lead her back to Grissom.

**XxxX**

"I was thinking we should go out..."Sarah couldn't believe her statement either. How could she think of going out at a time like this? The police would be searching every square inch of Vegas and she wanted to leave the cabin.

"Where?" Grissom hoped with more time together she would open up and tell him what had bothered her earlier.

"A know a place...Where we could be completely alone and free of the trivialities of the outside world. Interested?" She flashed Grissom a smile she hadn't shown anyone in years.

A simple nod gave Sarah permission to take him by the hand and lead him out to her car. She had cleaned it a while ago and was thankful she had.

"Where are we going?" Grissom asked once more, enjoying the guessing game. He seemed to enjoy puzzles.

"Lake Meade." She couldn't hide anything from him; she had already lied to him enough. She wished she just inflicted lies on him...At least then it wouldn't have caused him as much pain.

TBC

Please let me know what you think so far. ;)


	11. Chapter 10: Uncertainties

**Chapter 10**

Femme Fatale

**A/N: **Huge thanks to Mel for betaing. This chapter will leave you hanging so I promise to update ASAP. Thanks for reading.

Sara needed to clear her head, and she only knew of one place where she could accomplish such a task. She and Grissom had shared many memories on a hill top over looking Lake Meade. The hill was calling to her even more, as she sifted through the photographs in front of her. Helping with the case was her only option to sanity, she was glad Nick offered her the files willingly. She would hate to lose her job for breaking and entering, although at this moment nothing really mattered. What mattered the most was finding Grissom alive. Something in her heart told her that he would be found, but hearts can deceive.

At 3am she decided sneak out of the apartment while Greg slept like a baby on her fold out couch. After hours of searching files for answers, she believed she found a new clue. Before she could dare examine her hunch, she needed to clear her head.

The lake would be her refuge where she could briefly forget about her problems. She could at least reflect on the good memories before diving into the bad. As Sara locked the door behind her, she could hear the echoes of her feet on the linoleum hallway. For a second she could have sworn she heard Grissom's voice echo as well...Alas that was an uncertainty.

She wished she had more certainties in her life, not just presently but in the past. Perhaps then she would have been more optimistic. She knew he was alive, but she didn't know for how long. He could die at any moment and then she would lose him forever.

Damn those uncertainties.

**XxxX**

"Well what do you think?" Sarah asked as she looked away from Lake Mede and up at the mountains and hills above. It was one of her favorite places to go to as a child. "My mother used to take me here every summer as a child." She smirked as she watched Grissom's eyes glitter in amazement.

"It is beautiful." Grissom sighed, as he mind was tugging at something else. Something here was familiar and he couldn't put his finger on it. "Did we ever come here?" He wondered as he remained transfixed on a hill above.

"Not that I know of...I haven't been here since..." She trailed off far too late for her liking. Why was she here? This was a personal place that she avoided because it reminded her of her past;. the moments when she was the most happy, before her world turned upside down.

"Since when?" Grissom wondered as he drew his eyes away from the hill and into her pupils.

"Nothing." She locked her lips as tight as she could, as her mind tried to block the pain. It was too late, the sickening feeling in her stomach started to slowly rise and gather in her throat. The burning sensation resembled acid reflux but far more painful.

He wanted to know.

Could she even tell him without losing control? She didn't want to unleash her demons, not on him again. She had already done that and he almost ended up dead. There were parts of her she couldn't control, parts that seemed to hide when she was around him.

As he squeezed her hand tenderly, his eyes probed her for answers.

"Please tell me..." He softly asked, knowing it must be a sensitive topic from her hesitation.

"My mother died when I was ten." She coldly stated like a robot reading from a textbook.

"I'm sorry..."

"No don't be. That's what everyone told me, 'sorry.' Sorry doesn't hide the fact that I watched a man murder and rape my mother. All I could do was watch helplessly from under the bed. Sorry doesn't change the fact that I was too damn afraid to protect her. Sorry doesn't change all the things I have done because of it, I wish it could." She didn't mean to sound so angry, but all of her bottled emotions were finally coming loose. She had never told anyone how she felt until now. Sarah was glad he was the one to know.

He leaned in to kiss her and she didn't pull away like she thought. Instead she embraced his affection and hoped it would somehow heal her.

**XxxX**

As Sara drove her car up the road which led to the hill, she had an odd sensation creep over her. Something was wrong.

The feeling instinctively made her drive faster until she got up to the top. The feeling began to slowly fade as she got out of her car and walked slowly to the hill's overlook. She felt exhausted by the time she reached her destination. She was rewarded with the breathtaking sight of the lake below and the romantic glow of stars above. This was a moment she wished she could share with him. As she looked below, she noticed a couple laughing and kissing the worries away. She had no one.

As she looked below she heard a familiar voice laugh out loud and it caught her attention. She squinted her eyes to look closer. What was she doing? She was so desperate to find Grissom that she was looking for him in the form of another happy man in a relationship? She decided to enjoy the view for what it was. She was merely here to comfort herself before diving into the unknown. She had a hunch; she saw something in those photos, a commonality; one that no one had thought of, probably because of its insignificance.

What if the commonality leads her to Grissom?

Even if he was found dead, at least she could tell herself she tried everything she could to find him. She couldn't rest until she gave the case all of her energy, even if it in the end it killed her.

**XxxX**

As Grissom looked at Sarah he couldn't help but drift his attention periodically into the heavens. Three things at the moment were stunningly beautiful: 1) Sarah's hair gracefully blowing in the wind, 2) The way the stars seemed to light the entire Earth and 3...

On top of the hill is where he saw her.

A figure simply dressed in black caught his eye. His heart exploded with wonder as he stepped away from Sarah and drifted unknowingly towards the bottom of the hill for a better view. It seemed that the woman didn't even notice his gawking, she seemed to be in another place entirely as his eyes widened further.

His confusion deepened, as another quote randomly entered his mind.

_"_For every beauty there is an eye somewhere to see it. For every truth there is an ear somewhere to hear it. For every love there is a heart somewhere to receive it._" _

She was indeed beautiful, and somehow love did enter his mind as he continued to stare at her.

A faint feeling of anger filled Sarah's body as she watched Grissom being hypnotized by anther woman's beauty. How dare, he! She thought they had something, she knew they had something. Why is he making love to another merely by using his eyes? Before she could wonder who the woman was, she looked up on the hill and a name popped into her mind.

Sara Sidle.

The real love of Grissom's life was on top of the hill. What are the chances?

How could she compete with her if he ever found out about the truth?

Wait! He would never talk with her again if he remembered the truth...He would probably kill Sarah with his bare hands if he ever remembered.

It was different now though. She would never hurt him again. They had something and it was time that they used their love to do something. Now was the time to make him think about something else so he wouldn't remember. She tore him away with one sentence.

"It looks like its time to do it." She announced, making him snap out of his stare.

"Sorry?" Grissom wondered, still off balance.

"You told me that you wanted to pick your victims as soon as you got better." She plainly said, not having any emotion attached. She no longer cared for anyone other then their well being, and if it meant sacrificing a few lives to make him not remember, then that is the way she would have to play.

"I don't ever remember saying that. ...Sarah, I don't want to go back to that life." Grissom closed his lids and winced in regret at the victims he never victimized.

"Do you love me?" She asked, holding him closer.

The question was simple and from the feeling in his heart it should be. But why couldn't Grissom answer it. As he looked up at the hill once more and saw that the figure was gone he decided it must have been his imagination. He had suffered from enough head trauma. Besides, Sarah didn't seem to notice a mysterious woman on top of a hill.

"Yes." Grissom hoarsely confessed.

"Well then, let's do what you promised to do. You can't go back to forgetting who you are. If you stop now the police may get closer to finding you by not keeping busy...You don't want them to break us apart do you?" Sarah asked, genuinely worried at what his answer would be.

"Alright tomorrow we'll..." Grissom was immediately cut off by a worried Sarah. Tomorrow could be too late. What if he remembers tonight? It would all be over. It had to be done now.

"No it can't wait Grissom." She confessed, the desperate need in her eyes. She couldn't bear to say goodbye to him. Not now. Would he actually go through with it? Once he did, some of Grissom's innocence would be taken away once more. Could she live with herself after torturing him further, to selfishly have him longer?

"OK..." Grissom said, not being able to look her in the eye. He didn't know if he could do it. He didn't think of himself as a rapist or a murderer. Only time will tell to see if he would remember who he was. Maybe it would be for the best if he never remembered after all.

Please let me know what you thought of this. Reviews are motivation.


	12. Chapter 11: The Scarlet Letter

**Chapter 11**

Femme Fatale

**A/N:** Thanks to **Mel **once more for the awesome beta. This chapter is for **Megz** who kept me sane during all the craziness that was happening in my life these past few days. You pushed me forward to continue writing. Thanks again to all who reviewed my last chapter, reviews really do motivate!

Sara looked behind her shoulder one last time for any sign that she was followed. She thought that maybe the crime scene was still being guarded. After surveying the parameter she became satisfied to carry on her search as she slid her key into the lock.

They hadn't changed the locks. Good news for her.

As she broke the police seal on the door and let it swing open, she could still smell the faint scent of iron. He had bled a lot, this fact she tried to forget. She clung to every last shred of hope she had saved for a rainy day and carried on. She cleared her head and tried to forget that she was inside her kidnapped boyfriend's apartment. She would need some emotional detachment, if she was going to find what she was looking for.

As her steps echoed across the hardwood floor, her ears remained focused on every creek. Once she felt as if she were in the spot she needed to be, she pulled out one of the crime scene photos. Sara stood still in the middle of the living room, on top of what appeared to be a loose floor board.

As the photo now came to life in reality, she finally let out a small smile.

She had now found what she was looking for.

**XxxX**

As Sarah drove the car to central Boulder City, a small town near Lake Meade, Grissom's logic started to organize his doubts.

"I don't think I should go through with this. If I'm caught by the police, so be it...I don't see why I would ever have the need to waste an innocent life." Grissom shook his head in confusion and refused to believe he was a monster. In his heart he thought he was a good person...He could be wrong.

Sarah was quick to think on her feet. She felt her mind race as she thought up a story that would fuel his need to do an act that was unthinkable. She already felt the guilt well up in the pit of her stomach, but she had no choice but to feed him more lies. She didn't want to lose him, no matter what the cost.

"Do you know why you told me you started to rape and murder women?" She sighed, as she kept her eyes on the road towards an unknown destination.

"No...I can't see how I could ever do such a thing." He buried his head in his hands as he tried to block out the world around him. He needed to escape this nightmare that felt terribly wrong.

"Your father and you were extremely close when you were a child. You used to go fishing every evening, watch cheesy game shows on television and even brush your teeth together. Your mother on the other hand, was the one part of the equation that never suited your typical nuclear family. She hated your father; she always believed he was cheating on her. She used to drink and then she fell into drugs." She looked Grissom over to see how he was handling the well crafted story. Sarah was a good liar, but one had to be when one was a criminal fleeing from the law.

Grissom still had his head buried in his hands as she continued on with her story.

"You told me that your life turned upside down on your twelfth birthday, when you woke up in the middle of the night to see your mother stab your father in the back. She continued to stab him twenty five times before collapsing on his body and then shooting herself in the head. I was the only person you told." She let her acting take over as she felt tears well up in her eyes.

Her words finally struck a cord, as Grissom's head rose up from the physical barrier that tried to protect him.

"My mother killed my father?" Grissom felt his heart swell with the information that did not seem familiar to him. It could be another benefit to his amnesia; perhaps, some things were better left forgotten.

"That's how you told me that you started to hate all women, that they all held a secret agenda to get rid of their partner. You met me by chance in one of your victim's homes." She smiled, feeling her plan already starting to be set in motion.

"Why?" Grissom whispered hoarsely, as bile came up into his throat with every newly told memory.

"There is something you should know. "

Grissom nodded his head for her to continue. Her eyes merely glimmered, with anticipation. Finally she would tell him some of the truth and only hope he would give into her need.

"I share a commonality with you Grissom. My mother was murdered and raped right in front of me when I was just ten years old. Like a coward I was unable to do anything. I watched her suffer to her last breath and vowed to spend the rest of my life seeking revenge. I have made it my goal to rape and murder every man that fit my mother's killer until I am forced to stop. The only people that can make me stop, is the law... As I began to take on my revenge more seriously, we suddenly met. We coincidently met in the home of one of our victims..." She looked into his eyes and held his gaze. She could tell by the paleness of his face that it was a lot of information to take in. She tried to make the rest of her story simple.

"You were there to rape and murder the wife, I was there to rape and murder the husband...And so it was a match made in heaven." She nervously laughed, hoping he would buy it.

Of course Grissom wasn't in the state of mind to know what he should or should not believe. He still couldn't remember any clear details about his life besides the stories that Sarah had fed him. All he could do was trust her.

There was one feeling that started to surge through Grissom's veins that frightened him. He was beginning to feel rage that seemed to be slowly taking over his body.

"My father was raped by my mother?" Grissom asked again, hoping a memory would come back to him.

"Yes... and she killed him. Your only family. Now you have no one." She added, hoping her statement would make a difference. She was rewarded with Grissom's eyes slowly clouding over with fear and anger.

"What do we do now?" Grissom asked, some how ready for anything.

"Just follow my lead. Maybe you'll remember something after this. I miss the old you." She smiled as he brushed the side of his face.

"At least I have you." He sighed, leaning against her hand.

"You'll always have me, and after tonight you can help my quest. I need you more than ever." She confessed, her words finally spoke the truth.

"I'm sorry about your mother." He quietly apologized, even though he was not the reason for her demise. Once upon a time, something inside Sarah told her that Grissom had killed her mother. That he had raped her, and he was going to come after her next. She now knew that her intuition was false.

"Let's get out of here and help you recover. You always felt good after an attack, it's like you vented your anger. It's not good to keep it inside." She gently patted his hand as she climbed out of the car. Grissom soon followed and was beginning to lose control.

**XxxX**

As Sara bent over and loosened the wood panel beneath her feet, she was disappointed to find only piles of dust and dirt. Her hunch had proven to be an utter failure until she felt another loose board beside her left foot. Perhaps all hope was not lost.

Her neat, manicured nails gently pushed up the end of the panel to reveal a small cardboard square. Perplexed, Sara turned it over to reveal a faded letter from a Scrabble game.

The letter "P" seemed to ignite a new fuel for hope in Sara's gut. This wasn't just a coincidence; this had to have been done on purpose. This was a new reason to reexamine every crime scene; this was a factor that anyone could have over looked. She gave the piece another smile before placing it into one of her spare evidence bags. It was time she had a very important meeting with Nick, he will be happy to know he didn't risk his job for nothing.

**TBC**... _Remember all is not lost. Don't jump to conclusions now; I have been known to mess with people!_


	13. Chapter 12: A loose end

**Chapter12**

Femme Fatale

**A/N: ** Sorry for the long wait! I am in the process of moving. Its been a crazy couple of weeks. Now I have a lot more time so a chapter will come soon, scout's honor! Thanks to **Mel** betaing again.

Sarah led Grissom through the small crowds of people admiring the many beautiful window shops on the narrow street. Boulder City seemed like a typical quiet American town, where parents could let their children play without worrying about their safety. It was a town where no one would expect to be robbed, let alone raped and murdered.

As the couple strolled the street, Grissom started to lose confidence once more. His anger was starting to dissipate and he began to contemplate running away.

He couldn't. Sarah and he had a life together; he was beginning to feel things for her that he must have existed before his head injury. He was starting to fall in love, a feeling which kept on pushing him off balance.

"See anyone you hate?" Sarah asked as casually as one would ask about the weather.

"No...I don't know if I can..." He was cut off almost immediately.

"Yes you can! You used to do this all the time. If you want your life back, if you want to avenge your father's death, you'll do this." She demanded, causing for any of his logic to rush from his head once more. Perhaps the brain injury was worse than he thought, because he began to feel dizzy. He was starting to give into her words and that was throwing off his conscience. He couldn't do this! He was better than this.

As Sarah led the way Grissom bumped into a woman and didn't even apologize. He was usually always polite and would always correct his errors, but Grissom could only stare back at the woman in return.

She looked familiar.

Her auburn hair flowed into her eyes, as the wind swept over a speed bump and began to gust rather strongly. Her brown eyes taunted his own by holding her stare firmly. It was as if both of them were stunned. Why did she look so familiar?

One could describe the woman before him with similar characteristics as Sara's. Since Grissom didn't remember Sara, he did not put the connection together, he merely felt confused by the emotions swirling inside of him.

As he tried to figure out why she looked so familiar, something in him snapped and his gaze turned into one that was far from flirtatious.

"Watch where you are going next time." Grissom yelled.

His harsh words sent the woman away, perplexed and offended.

Why had he reacted this way to a complete stranger? The question was forming in Sarah's mind as well. Grissom was starting to subconsciously believe her story. Maybe he wanted to get his memories back so badly that he was starting to believe her lies. Sarah's luck was becoming far too good this evening.

"So I'm guessing she's the one huh?" Sarah smiled, as Grissom's eyes were still following the woman in the distance.

"Let's go." He simply stated as he picked up his walking speed to observe where the young woman was venturing off to.

For what seemed like a couple of minutes, Grissom and Sarah followed the woman back to her home in an isolated part of town. It was Grissom's luck that the woman didn't have any neighbors; noise wouldn't be a large issue. As they hid behind some bushes, they watched the woman go up her steps and then lock the door behind her.

"Follow me." Grissom narrowed his gaze as his mind thought of a deeper purpose.

Revenge.

He had no one now; no one to celebrate Christmas with or a birthday. He only had his girlfriend, but was left with no family of his own. She was the only one he could trust, but generally all women were evil. They all had a hidden agenda and they all wanted to kill their mates.

Grissom now thought of the female population like a female praying mantis. Once the female praying mantis had sex with its mate, it then proceeded to eat it. The female then devours its mate whole, becoming the dominant sex.

Before Grissom could wonder how he knew so much about bugs, he saw a window blind close which snapped him out of his revere.

"What are you planning?" Sarah began to wonder if his instinctive investigation skills were becoming handy as he staked out the area.

"I'm going to climb through the window." Grissom obviously stated. He motioned for Sarah to follow as he gingerly climbed through the living room window.

Grissom had thought the woman had planned her fate very well, due to the fact that she didn't even bother securing her home before she slept. Home security systems, though highly over priced could prevent needless break ins.

"Shit." Grissom swore, a rare occurrence which even took Sarah off guard.

_I hope I didn't change him forever because of all this..._

"What?" She asked, sounding worried for once.

"I think I left some prints on the window." Grissom walked over to the window pane and smudged the prints with the bottom of his black sweater, which matched his charcoal pants.

He didn't bother to inform Sarah of his plan, as he snuck over to the fireplace and grabbed the flashlight resting upside down.

"We're going to need some light for now." He gave her a wink before he began his journey up the stairs. Sarah followed closely behind, growing slightly nervous as the reached the top.

Should she make him go through this and selfishly ruin his life?

She didn't have time to think.

Once Grissom reached the top, he turned the corner and slowly flashed his light into her bedroom. Not realizing the door was open until it was far too late, he woke the woman from her slumber. As she woke, all she could see was a blinding white light in front of her, making her believe she was dead. She quickly began to wish she were, once she recognized the face before her.

Flashing her a smile that was far from innocent; Grissom lowered the flashlight.

"If you scream, I will kill you. Do you understand?" Grissom asked as he stood in front of her bed and lowered his gaze intensely.

Sarah let out a grin as she watched her plan unfold.

A tear of fear trickled down the woman's cheek as she nodded in terror while Grissom tore off a piece of duct tape. Sarah had given him a roll in the car; she explained it was a necessity in these cases. As he duct taped her mouth closed and tied up her hands to the headboard, Grissom was starting to feel an erotic sense of adrenaline pump through his veins.

For some unknown reason a memory of a roller coaster filled his mind and distracted him for a brief moment. It had been his first real memory since the attack. He could be recovering.

As he shook off the memory, he looked down at the woman with a growing sense of lust.

This man was no longer Grissom; he was a man who was spoon fed lies. Lies to a man without memory, could change a man's character for good. One could only hope his memory would return before it was too late.

Sarah smiled proudly as she walked over to Grissom and grabbed him gently from behind before kissing his neck.

"Do this honey, you can do it. Just give into it." She whispered seductively in his ear.

In what seemed like slow motion, Grissom lowered his hand down to the woman's breasts and began to feel them with all of his strength. Pleasure was not a factor. He was already relishing in the torment of one of the first stages of rape: dominance.

As he started to undo the woman's shirt, he became more turned on by the way she shook in fear with every new step he made.

As he lowered his head quickly to take a bite from her neck, something flickered in Grissom's mind.

_"That's why I love you Grissom. You always do the right thing. You wouldn't hurt a fly, especially a fly." Sara laughed. _Her laughs snapped him out of his confused state of mind and put his logic back in the driver's seat.

He immediately backed away and rose his hands up in the air like he was being arrested.

"I'm not doing this." Grissom firmly demanded, standing his ground.

"Why the hell not? What the fuck could change your mind? You were so into it you were getting a bloody erection. I'm surprised you don't want to fuck her, you haven't done it to me yet." She hissed back, all of her repressed angry diving out of her mouth.

"Go to hell." Grissom yelled, as he tried to make his way out of the bedroom.

"Either you at least kill her, or I will. She is a loose end. She knows who we are." She yelled back, not being able to take the sudden change in plans. It had been going too well, she knew it was too good to be true.

Grissom wasn't being sucked into the darkness again. He would voice his own stand point and would not back down. He had a mind of his own, even if he couldn't remember a thing.

"You will not touch her." He stated, as he walked into her personal space.

The woman on the bed still struggled to get free, trying to scream through the tape over her mouth.

"And you're going to stop me?" She let out a laugh, feeling her other half starting to take over.

"Yes." He remained strong and did not back down despite his fear to run. He loved her, but he didn't love her enough to kill and rape a woman. He didn't care what he had done in the past and he never wanted to go back.

Sarah startled Grissom by pushing him away and running over to the woman's helpless body lying on the bed. Sarah laughed as her hands focused on the woman's neck and she started to strangle her.   
"What the hell are you doing?" Grissom cried. He pushed her aside, but that didn't stop her. Without thinking of the consequences, Sarah pushed Grissom against the wall with all her strength, causing him to hit his head in return.

Once he was passed out, Sarah continued on her task at hand. She couldn't let the woman survive. She wouldn't let the police catch her; she didn't want to lose Grissom forever.

TBC...

Please let me know what you thought of this chapter


	14. Chapter 13: Hidden Treasure

**Chapter 13**

Femme Fatale

**A/N:** Thanks to **Mel** once more for the beta! I have written most of my chapters in advance and I can say that there will be a lot of twists ahead so be careful! I hope you enjoy where I will be going and I look forward to hearing your responses. Thanks to those who have taken the time to review- It seriously makes my day...And writing easier!

"Nick I found something at Grissom's, I think it may be an important piece of the puzzle we're missing." Sara sounded far more excited than Nick did. He merely grunted on the phone in response.

"I'm off the investigation for now, until I solve this new case." Nick sighed, feeling further strained by another murder to close.

"There's another vic?" Sara asked, crossing her fingers that it wasn't another attack. If the Femme had struck again it meant she didn't have her hands full with Grissom. Ever since his disappearance, the rapes and murders stopped, taking some of the pressure off of the Sherriff's shoulders.

"No not exactly. In Boulder City there's been a possible rape and murder of a young woman. It's a pretty quiet area, so a lot of the locals have been shaken up as well."

"Boulder City? I was just at Lake Meade last night...Can I come along?" Sara crossed her fingers once more. She hoped if she tagged along she could tell Nick about the clue she had found at Grissom's. She didn't trust talking about it over the phone. Perhaps she was paranoid, but you had to be in this time and age. Anyone could be listening.

"Fine, I'll pick you up in five at your place. Then you can tell me what you found. I hope that whatever it is, it leads us to Griss." Nick let out another sigh, his heart still ached for his boss. Grissom had done everything he could to find him within one day, Nick couldn't even find him within a week.

"I hope so." Sara tried to hold back her tears as she remained focused on her task at hand. She was going to find Grissom, she knew what she found was not pointless. Everyone left something behind at a crime scene, and the letter "P" was going to lead her back to her old life -hopefully "pronto."

**XxxX**

Grissom slowly woke up in his bed, for a moment he had forgotten about last night. He shifted in his blankets and felt a warm arm protectively around him. Sarah was sound asleep.

As he stared at her, he started to remember the events which occurred the night before. His heart rate doubled its pace as the memories and emotions flooded back to him.

Did he rape that woman? He couldn't have...He stopped before it was too late.

_Sarah was trying to **kill **her._

The realization hit Grissom hard. What had Sarah done while he was unconscious and could he ever forgive her?

Sarah fluttered her eyes open and greeted Grissom with a warm smile.

"How are you feeling?" She gently rubbed his head, which made him pull away.

"What did you do?" He demanded as he locked eyes with her.

She could never lie to him once his eyes found hers, but she had no choice but to cover up the truth. She didn't want to lose him for good.

"I took you home. Nothing more." She lied, hoping he would at least forgive her for the nasty bump on his head.

"Then why push me out of the way?" He narrowed his stare and was determined not to give up until he had some answers.

"Alright listen... I had to get rid of her, she saw who we were. With a clean description of you, they'd be hunting you down in a matter of hours, a day tops. I did what I did to save you." She confessed, for once her words had been the truth.

Grissom thought about her explanation long and hard. She was after all only trying to protect him. Could he live with the fact that an innocent life had been sacrificed at his own expense?

"You alright honey?" She gently grabbed his hand and continued to hold his gaze. Grissom eventually looked down at the bed sheets and distracted himself by counting the stitch marks in the fabric. Once he counted up to 178, he looked up at Sarah once more.

"I think I'll be fine. The question is, can you live with yourself?" Grissom asked, before getting up off of the bed and walking into the living room. Sarah couldn't understand what she had done wrong. She thought she was pleased with her actions; she had saved them both from getting caught.

The only explanation she could think of was his memory was slowly returning. He must be remembering her, the woman he was in love with.

_She has tormented me for the last time. It's time to up the stakes and ensure that I will have his undivided attention for the rest of my life. _

She grinned to herself as she thought out a plan to get rid of the last thing in her way: Sara Sidle.

**XxxX**

Sara followed Nick inside the quiet suburban home in Boulder City. The home's white paneling and large bay windows reminded Sara of a wooden doll house she had when she was a child. She played with that doll house day and night, until her father had thrown it against a wall, causing for it to break in a hundred pieces. The memory was quickly forgotten once Nick noticed that the door was still locked.

"Looks like our suspect did a heave-ho" Nick walked closer towards the window and shook his head.

"Wasn't closed, huh? So much for living in a suburban paradise." Sara took a few photos of the window from a far, before following Nick for a close up.

"I'm going to dust for prints. Just observe ok? No touching, no one even knows you're with me on this case. So what do you want to tell me?" Nick quickly looked over at Sara, to see her face light up. She knew she had a clue and in her gut she believed Grissom was alive. It had been a week and a half since his disappearance, but she was confident she was going to find him.

"I found a scrabble letter under a loose floor board at Grissom's." Sara watched Nick's face; she noted that his dismal expression did not change.

"Nothing probative." Nick sighed as he continued to dust the windowsill.

"Every victim the Femme has chosen has had wood flooring." Sara revealed.

"Coincidence." Nick's loss of hope was now starting to frustrate Sara. She had found a commonality which may break the case and Nick just ignored her findings. It was like he didn't want to find Grissom.

"How do you know that?" Sara demanded, as she put her hands on her hips.

"What are you trying to say, the killer only looks for vics that have wood floors?"

"No what I am saying is that she must know they have wood floors." Sara smiled as Nick's expression turned to one that was more hopeful.

"So she must have a job that allows her access to people's homes. But why a Scrabble letter? We don't even know if she left letters under the other floors, we haven't checked." Nick confessed.

"After you're done here, we'll back track to the other crimes scenes and hopefully it'll lead us to Grissom." Sara said, feeling her hope grow even further now that she had Nick's trust and understanding.

"So she's leaving the pieces at every scene to do what...Spell us something? To taunt us?" Nick questioned, feeling more confused by the case.

"Perhaps she is leaving us a long message to figure it out...What it is I don't know." Sara commented, holding the print cards when Nick was done with them.

"Well it looks like I got a few good prints. After I'm done working the scene I'll drop the evidence back off to the lab and we can get started on re-investigating the crime scenes. God I hope we find him." Nick sighed once more, before breaking the lock on the door and walking slowly inside.

"You're not the only one who wants to see him Nicky. I can't survive without him, he's all I have." Sara bit back her fear and sadness and replaced it with hope.

As they examined the home for any clues to the suspects identity Sara stopped in her tracks. The hardwood floor creaked underneath her in an eerie fashion, it sounded like a wooden door groaning open on Halloween night. The noise of the creaking echoed across the living room and made Nick turn around.

Sara focused her attention beneath her feet. As she walked around the floor she listened closely for a noise that would lead her to a clue.

"What are you thinking?" Nick asked. Sara silenced his questions once she stepped on a specific floor board.

She quickly bent down and lifted up a loose board in the living room beside the couch. Her heart raced as she uncovered another clue.

Her skin grew pale as she lifted out a hand full of letters that were in no particular order.

"But this crime scene doesn't fit within the Femme's MO. Why would she change now?" Nick wondered as he stared at the letters in disbelief.

Sara stayed crotched down on the floor and spread out the letters on the ground. She shifted them around in every possible order, determined to find their meaning. As she examined the letters closely, her heart lurched once she realized all the letters to Grissom's name were in the pile. She spelled out his name rather quickly, which left behind twelve more letters. Panicking, Sara shuffled the letters around until she spelled out the phrase that she was longing to hear.

Nick looked down on the floor, sweat running down his brow with their only clue into Grissom's disappearance.

The statement "Grissom is still alive" was written in faded Scrabble letters. Sara looked up a Nick and let out a long sigh of relief. There was still a chance.

"Let's go." Nick grabbed Sara's hand forcefully as he ran to the door.

"What about the scene? It's fresh." Sara wanted to find Grissom more than anyone, but this crime scene was now connected to Grissom's disappearance and all of the Femme's cases. What perplexed Nick though, was that the murder was of a woman and not a man. It had to mean something, for now he wasn't sure what.

"I'm calling in days to handle it. We have to go back to all of the scenes. I'm betting Grissom's life that the floors will have more clues."

Sara ran back over to the letters and sealed them in an evidence bag. In all of the confusion, protocol was becoming a minor factor. They had to remain calm and objective if they were going to solve this. There were over twenty scenes to go back to, she just hoped there was something still left to be found.

TBC...


	15. Chapter 14: The Evidence Never Lies

**Chapter 14**

Femme Fatale

**A/N:** Thanks again to Unspoken for the awesome beta job. And thanks once more to all those that have taken the time to review. This chapter (as you will see) has many plot turns and I can't wait to hear what you think.

Sarah ran into the woods and found the large tree she was looking for. She was having her doubts about her plan in case he didn't fall for more lies, but it was all she had left. Before carrying out the first act in her three part play she took in a large breath and looked around her.

No one was coming, he wouldn't hear her.

She stepped back a couple of feet from the tree, and glanced around the woods one more time.

It was now or never.

With one puff of energy, she ran against the tree and literally started to beat herself up against its trunk. With every bang she felt herself become more confident, Grissom was never going to leave her now. Not after this.

With one final bang into the tree, she collapsed on the floor exhausted and in pain. All of her efforts and wounds will pay off; she would have him all to herself. No one could take him away from her.

**XxxX**

"Nick, thank god we got a hold of you. Where are you?" Catherine asked; her voice was slightly scrambled from the poor reception on Nick's cell phone.

"I'm driving to the third crime scene in the Femme case with Sara. We've got a new lead." Nick announced.

Sara looked out of the window and watched the scenery fly past around them.

"So do we, this one is a little more unexpected. You need to come to the lab right away." Catherine's voice held a sense of panic that threw Nick off guard.

"What's wrong Cath?"

The question made Sara turn around, hoping it wasn't bad news.

"We know Grissom is alive..." Catherine's voice dropped even lower.

"So do we?"

"Just get to the lab right away." Catherine exclaimed before hanging up on Nick. The dial tone still rang in his ears, causing his heart to drop.

"We gotta go to the lab" Nick told Sara, trying to keep her calm. Not even he knew the whole story. Catherine's voice still gave him shivers, something wasn't right.

"What's wrong?" Sara's voice asked, trembling on the last word.

"I have no idea." Nick exclaimed before staring Sara right in her eye.

The crime lab's exterior seemed more pleasant than its interior. As soon as Sara entered, her mood dropped another couple of points. The staff was practically moping in each corner of their labs, the sight could only make the two CSIs even more nervous. What was Catherine hiding?

Nick guided Sara into the conference room where the rest of the team looked even more somber than the rest of the lab. Greg's eyes were blood shot red, most likely from crying. Catherine's hair was a mess and her mascara had run down her cheeks. Warrick seemed distant, trying to hold in his pain to keep the whole team together.

Sara's entire body began to shake at the display of sadness before her. The only explanation was that Grissom was dead. Sara sat down in the chair, where the tears began to flow.

"Oh God. I just wanted to say goodbye." Sara sobbed, turning her head away from her friends.

Catherine softly interrupted.

"He's not dead Sara." Catherine flatly revealed, still not uplifting the team's spirits.

"Then what then! What is so horrible that you couldn't tell me over the phone? He's still out there suffering, dying or god knows what and you're playing mind games?" Sara yelled, not caring about the workers that stopped in their tracks outside the door.

"Sit down Sara." Catherine commanded, she merely sighed when Sara didn't obey her wishes.

"We got the results back from the murder scene at Boulder City. DNA was quick to process after Nick called talking about the connection between the Femme cases."

Sara sat down, still wondering what the big deal was. She thought she'd already uncovered the great mystery about the scene, apparently there was something she over looked. After all, Nick and she had left the scene pretty quick. They both had already gone to two different crime scenes the Femme had already hit.

"Days collected the standard samples of DNA for rape related murders. They took a swab from the woman's mouth etc...you know the drill." Catherine stopped talking to let Sara take in the new information.

"DNA results got back just an hour ago. We found Grissom's DNA in the vic's mouth and his prints were found along with an unknown on the windowsill." Catherine still didn't believe the words that came out of her own mouth. She could feel the tears flood back to her eyes and she refused to cry again.

"It's not possible" Sara sobbed.

"Sara you know that DNA and fingerprints can only have one source." Catherine stated, not wanting to believe the findings herself.

"Check it again!" Sara yelled, jumping out of her seat.

Nick rested a hand on Sara's back and in return she pulled away.

"We have, twice." Warrick exclaimed. Closing his eyes, as his headache was starting to take over his mind.

"What the hell does this mean? He's a killer? He's working with the Femme?" Sara refused to believe the evidence. For once it had to be wrong.

"Grissom's disappearance could have been staged. He could've been working with her all along. A staged attack would be a perfect..." Catherine was cut off in an instant

"How dare you turn your back on him! Grissom would never hurt anyone! What motive does he have?" Sara continued to raise her voice with every question. It seemed everyone had lost their faith, except Sara.

"I don't know. But the evidence is telling us that Grissom's involved; we can't ignore it, no matter how much Grissom means to us." Catherine protested.

"Go to hell. All of you, for believing it." Sara looked at everyone in the entire room, and no one was brave enough to stare at her in the eye. She had enough. She left in a huff and banged into several workers on her way out.

She refused that Grissom could be capable of murder. He loved life, and above all he trusted in his team. Apparently, they had lost their trust in him.

**XxxX**

Grissom paced the floor of the cabin and wiped the sweat off of his brow. It was almost midnight, and Sarah should have been home over six hours ago. She claimed she was going to get some groceries; it would have taken no more than two hours. As his heart thudded against his chest at a steady rate, a noise outside his door caused him to jump.

Grissom swung the door open and ran outside, the sight in front of him caused him to almost collapse on the ground.

"Oh my god Sarah..." Grissom yelled as he ran over to her car. She sat in the driver's seat, physically beaten and looked emotionally exhausted.

"She found me Grissom." Sarah wheezed out, thickly laying out her emotions, allowing for her tears to flow at a quick pace.

"Who? Who the hell did this? So help me god..." Grissom cut himself off before admitting to his violent urges. He wanted to kill whatever son of a bitch did this to Sarah. He hadn't been there to protect her when she needed him the most. She had killed another just to prevent him from getting caught by the police. He chose to be a coward and stray away from their plans.

"A woman I used to work with... I got a promotion and she didn't. She saw me and I guess she was still pissed, huh?" Sarah managed to let out a weak laugh.

"Come on, I have to take you to a hospital." Grissom climbed in the car and Sarah was quick to stop his efforts.

"We can't!" Her eyes pleaded with his logic. He had forgotten, they couldn't just stroll into a hospital, not after all they had done.

"Fine, let's get you inside then." Grissom softly whispered as he scooped her up and carried her gingerly into the house. After cleaning her wounds and seeing the extent of the damage, he knew that someone had to pay for her suffering.

"Sarah, I want you to do me a favor. Tell me who did this to you." Grissom asked, as he knelt down to her on the couch so he could be at a proper eye level.

Sarah took in a heavy breath before attempting to continue.

"Her name is Sara Sidle..."

TBC...

Please let me know what you thought of this chapter. ;)


	16. Chapter 15: Unmasked

**Chapter 15**

Femme Fatale

**A/N:** Thanks to **Unspoken** for betaing once more. This chapter is going to be leaving you guys hanging but no worries- I will post another chapter next week. Enjoy and be prepared for the long intensity ahead. Thanks once more to everyone who reviews- especially for this chapter I would appreciate your feedback.

Sara's CSI identification was taken away along with her gun. She was suspended from duty until further notice. This time it wasn't due to Ecklie's wrath, it was Catherine's. She thought Sara was too close to all of the cases and was a danger to herself and the rest of the team. Nick assured her that he would still look into the rest of the homes for anymore clues. Sara was hardly confident in his reassurance. Nick seemed just as defeated as the rest of the team; she was officially on her own.

Sara unlocked the door to her apartment to find a note on her couch.

_"If you need anything don't hesitate to call." - Greg_

The note did put a brief smile on her face before she threw herself on the sofa.

What has happened to Grissom? What was he doing inside that victim's apartment? The questions made her feel even more light headed as her headache pulsated through her mind… she needed to rest. Tomorrow was another day, and as soon as she woke up she was determined to find him...even if she was on her own.

**XxxX**

_Sarah took in a heavy breath before attempting to continue. _

_"Her name is Sara Sidle..."_

_Grissom narrowed his gaze and felt his stomach drop. He knew that name! Friend, enemy...? He did not remember. All he knew was that she almost killed the only person who cared for him. She had to pay. _

_Grissom finally got the address to Sara's residence out of his companion. She lived in Las Vegas, it would be a long drive but he had plenty of motivation to get him through the night._

_"Sarah, I promise you. She will not go unpunished." Grissom kissed her forehead before grabbing his jacket and keys to Sarah's car._

_"Where are you go—oing?" Sarah stuttered._

_"You think I would actually let someone hurt you and get away with it?" Grissom ran out the door and headed towards the car. He had only one thing on his mind: revenge. That was the feeling that made him drive into the night. That was the feeling that made his blood boil..._

_And that was the feeling that would change his life forever._

**XxxX**

As Sara drifted off to sleep on her couch, a noise made her jump. As she slowly started to wake from the feeling of impending slumber, she noticed all the noises were coming from her bedroom. Alarmed, she reached for her gun which was usually on the table. Remembering her firearm had been confiscated, she searched the room for her backup handgun.

Where did she keep it again?

As she listened closely, she heard whispering and laughing coming from her room. The noises become louder and more clear the as she woke up.

"Damn it!" Sara swore under her breath. Her backup weapon she kept in her bedroom, the source of the sudden timbre of noises. As her heart rate increased, she quietly approached her bedroom down the long hall. A Swiss army knife resting on a bookshelf caught her eye. Without hesitation, she picked up the knife and felt barely armed enough to deal with the sounds emitting from her room.

Could it be the Femme? The sudden realization brought even more panic to Sara's mind. She was normally a very rational human being. However, Grissom wasn't even able to defend himself from the serial killer and rapist, how could she hope to be safe?

At the very least if the Femme was in her home she could confront her about Grissom's whereabouts. She would at least die with the knowledge of where he was and if he was alright.

She suddenly felt calmer.

Feeling a jolt of bravery, she kicked open her door.

**XxxX**

Grissom's state of mind was all over the place. The mixture of emotions running through his veins was incomprehensible: Sadness, anger and fear were the main feelings pulsating with the most force. As he pulled up to the address Sarah gave him, he felt his hands shake. It was an apartment building- as he suspected. This meant far too many people would be a witness to whatever he was about to attempt. What scared him the most was the fact that he was beginning feel out of control the closer he got to the complex. He was still unbearably angry, that much he knew for sure.

Grissom's loss of control normally frightened him, however this time was different.

As he made his way out of the car and into the lot of the apartment, he scoped the area for a weakness. He needed to find a discreet way into her home, without drawing attention to himself. As Grissom looked up, a fire escape caught his eye. Now all he could do was hope that he could carry out his plan swiftly and quietly.

**XxxX**

As Sara looked around her bedroom, the loud talking became more of a nuisance. Her alarm clock radio must have gone off. A dull news station emitted from the tiny speakers of the radio, causing Sara to slam down the 'off' button in response. Before leaving the room, something shiny on her nightstand caught her eye. Sara gingerly walked over to the frame which reflected the light into her eye moments ago. The picture caused her to let out a giggle.

_"We were so happy there." _Sara thought, examining the photo.

_Grissom held Sara from behind her waist, both of them wore a contagious smile on their lips. He could make her smile day or night. They were truly blessed..._

Maybe a little too blessed. She would give anything just to see his face again, or hold his hand. She didn't understand his connection with the cases, nor did she want to. She just wanted to see him again so she could let him know how sorry she was for abandoning him. As Sara sat on her bed, her back faced a window that was open just enough for a brisk breeze to grace her presence. When she got up to close it shut, she put the picture softly down on her bed, looking back at it one last time.

The picture represented another reality for Sara, an opposing reality which she hoped to gain access to once more. She missed Grissom so much.

As she bent over to close the window, she put her hands on the frame and jumped at the foreign contact of something else. A hand grabbed hers, the grip was too strong to break. Before she could scream she saw a gun pointed at her face. She couldn't make out the shooter- it was too dark.

Then she heard it...

"If you scream, I will shoot you. It's as simple as that Miss Sidle." The shooter yelled, his face slowly coming into view.

She could barely speak... Her pulse must have flat lined. She could no longer be alive. This wasn't happening!

"Grissom...?" Sara whispered as a tear fell from her cheek and onto the floor.

TBC…

Please R&R ;)


	17. Chapter 16: Fall On Your Knees

**Chapter 16**

Femme Fatale

**AN: ** This is where the story takes another turn. Its not over yet- there are still many turns to come. As always please have faith that I always produce a happy ending involving GSR. Thanks for **Unspoken** for the betaing and to all of my readers who review- you help me a ton with your encouragement.

The word caught him off guard and startled him like a punch to the gut. How could she know who he was? He couldn't talk... It was just a set back, if she was as crazy as Sarah told him then this all was apart of her plan.

"Shut up." He exclaimed as he climbed through her window still holding her to gun point.

"Grissom? I---" It was too much for her. She couldn't process everything that was happening.

"Listen, I don't know how you know my name but you have a lot to explain. Normally I am a man of order but what you have done out weighs my patience and practice." Grissom spoke as he gritted his anger through his teeth. He was still holding back all of his rage; he knew eventually he would explode. Any of the consequences he was sure the woman deserved.

Sara's legs shook not in fear, but in confusion. What did the Femme do to him? He was no longer the man she once knew.

"I'm going to try to be reasonable. If you do what I tell you, I will not harm you. But if you don't answer my questions, I'll carry out my original plan. Got it?" Grissom grabbed Sara by her shoulders and threw her down on the bed. The picture which once lay on the mattress, fell to the ground. Grissom paid no attention to the broken frame and merely stepped over the glass. He put on a pair of latex gloves and brought out a roll of duct tape from his pocket.

"Please! Grissom it's me..." Sara pled with Grissom not getting any form of recognition.

Grissom merely smiled, and grabbed both of her hands with ease. Sara was in too much shock to fight back. Deep down inside still she trusted Grissom with her life. Only now did she realize that she should be fighting for her life, instead of trying to reconcile the feelings which once lingered between them.

"I only know you as the woman who beat up my future wife over a promotion." He gave Sara one last sadistic grin before covering her mouth with a strip of tape. It was too late, she couldn't object.

After Grissom taped Sara to the frame of the bed, he showed her the long knife which once resided in his pocket.

"You see this?" Grissom pushed the knife into Sara's face.

Sara frantically nodded back and forth trying to scream through the tape.

"This can either hurt or help your situation. If you scream I'll stab you. Simply and clearly put? If you don't answer a question I pose to you, I'll do the same. Understood?"

Sara nodded one last time, feeling more tears fall down her face.

Grissom eyed Sara carefully one last time before slowly ripping off the tape around her mouth. Sara winced in pain at his slow removal of the tape. This wasn't the Grissom she once was in love with.

"Question one: Why did you hurt Sarah?" Grissom held the knife over Sara, reminding her of what her future could be.

"I-- I don't know a Sarah." She fumbled on her words, trying to clear her head.

"Wrong answer." Grissom flatly said as his knife cut off her shirt... not what Sara was expecting. She thought something could've been done far worse than his simple cut to her blouse.

"Please...Grissom don't you remember anything?" She cried, causing for Grissom to shake his head.

"I've never seen you before in my life. And YOU tried to kill the only person I love." Grissom screamed aloud. Hitting Sara in the face, startling her once more.

"Please..." Sara begged.

"Please what? Why should I show sympathy for someone who almost killed the only person in the world I've loved?" Grissom's yelling echoed through out the room.

"I didn't hurt anyone." Sara pled once more.

Grissom narrowed his eyes and she could tell by his expression she had said the wrong thing.

He gripped the knife hard and tore the rest of her shirt off.

Still struggling to get free, Sara screamed and Grissom warned her once more by showing the sharp blade to her once more.

"You asked for it." Grissom flatly acknowledged.

He began to cut off her pants rather slowly, relishing in the horror in her eyes he was causing her.

"Don't cry; you know you like it." Grissom laughed once he cut through the last thread of her pants. He threw them to the side of the room and didn't hide any of his resumed laughter. For once Grissom was in control and it felt good. Usually his logic and reason were always in the driver's seat, but in the back of his mind they were still with him, knocking on his door. This time they were overpowered by his need for revenge, Sarah had truly changed him for the worse. For Grissom, control was always apart of his life and his relationships, Sara knew this fact. However, she never would have guessed even in her most heinous nightmares that Grissom would hurt her. She knew something was wrong and she could only hope that he would come to his senses.

Sara didn't bother to fight back, she was weak. She didn't know if it was because of the shock she was still experiencing or the fact that she hadn't had a good night's sleep since Grissom's disappearance. She had a strong will to survive but the strength to fight is what she lacked. Grissom could tell that she had finally given up and took the opportunity to strike further.

As he undid her bra he kept on seeing Sarah's battered body. As his logic came back to haunt him, he reminded himself that Sara was the one who hurt his best friend and lover. She almost took away what was most important to him in the world. After all, supposedly Grissom was a dangerous murderer and a rapist; it should come natural, right?

**XxxX**

Greg sat in his apartment and stared at the adjacent wall in front of him. What was he doing? Why was he here? Now more than ever Sara needed someone to comfort her. He had been there for her during the hardest days and now when her whole world turned upside down he abandoned her. Without any further useless reasoning, he grabbed his keys and wallet from his table and walked out the door; leaving his gun behind...He would later learn to regret his fatal choice.

**XxxX**

He had escalated past the point of no return.

Sara lost consciousness from shock and any sane part of Grissom was far from gone. When he was finally done with her, he cleaned himself off with a nearby rag and then threw the waste at her with no sympathy. To him she deserved every last part of his emotional and physical torture. In a way he felt disappointed that she passed out, he would have liked to see the fear in her eyes as he finally carried out his plan. As he got his pants on something caught his eye. With curiosity, he bent over to examine the current object of his fascination. Even though his logical side was drained out with false truths, rage and revenge it somehow managed to leak through. Carefully, Grissom lifted the picture from the glass and slowly turned it over.

Immediately he felt the blood drain from his face.

His ears rang with panic. The whole room spun with a force that seemed to knock Grissom to the ground. What had he done?

It was his mind playing tricks on him, he wasn't seeing clearly. This could not be possible!

As he stared at the picture for the second time, the image and his memory started to become crystal clear.

A picture of Grissom holding Sara close to his body was shaking in his hands from fear. Nausea and then utter shock started to creep into view. It was too much.

_Grissom held Sara close to his body waiting for the shutter to open and then close. _

_He looked down at the woman he loved and smiled._

_"You're not going to give me bunny ears again are you?" He tried to ask seriously._

_"Not this time bugman." Sara giggled and leaned closer into his chest. Her smile widened as the shutter quickly opened and closed._

Instead of feeling nostalgic he threw up on the floor, unable to hold down the memories.

And then he remembered the rest...

_"You like that? Fucking filth of the earth that's what you are." He whispered. _

It was way too much for Grissom to handle. After reliving his own attack he fought the urge to sit in a corner holding himself in the fetal position. He had loved Sarah! He trusted her with his life. Worse yet...

"My god what have I done?" Grissom wondered in horror as he remembered in a haze what he had done to Sara just moments ago. How could he do such a thing to anyone let alone HER? If anyone deserved to suffer it was Grissom. She would refuse to speak with him again let alone continue a relationship. How could she?

He ran over to her lifeless form on the bed and immediately draped a sheet around her naked body. He didn't have a cohesive recollection of his attack on her, he could now barely remember the past few weeks. Everything seemed to be erasing from his mind and he was now afraid of his past. What else did he do? He tried to remember but he could only recall brief moments. As he held Sara in his arms, waiting for her to wake a flash entered his mind. He remembered sneaking into a woman's house with a flashlight. He remembered duct taping her mouth shut and threatening her as he loomed over her body. What else had he done?

As Sara began to wake she immediately started to fight. Grissom instantly took the tape off of Sara's mouth and hands once he saw the bounds he had forced upon her. Tears welled up in his eyes with regret and fear as he viewed the horror which remained in her eyes.

"Sara... I..." What could he say to make things better? Nothing. The best thing to do in this situation was to stay quiet. He didn't want to scare her even more then she already was.

"Why? Why? ...Please tell me!" She cried aloud, pushing him away with all her might. She no longer seemed terrified but disgusted.

Now may be the time to say something. It took several attempts for something coherent to actually blurt out from his mouth.

"I'm sorry." He whispered aloud before leaning over Sara and putting an arm around her protectively. She immediately turned away at the gesture and shook further in fear. Grissom deserved the reaction and took the liberty of sitting on the ground holding himself instead.

Sara thought she knew Grissom inside and out, now she could never look him in the eye without remembering the pain he caused him.

"How could you do this to ME?" Her words could be barely heard through her frequent gasps for air. She was entering into shock just as fast as Grissom.

One may claim that both were victims forever changed by one woman's jealousy and selfishness.

As Grissom felt another wave of nausea that fell upon him harder than an ocean's wave, he decided to come to terms with his actions.

He looked up at Sara who was still frozen in fear; any other person would've assumed she was catatonic. Grissom carefully rose up from the floor and kneeled beside her bed, still feeling frequent shakes shoot through his body.

"I'm sorry that I loved you." He barely heard his own words as he lowered himself to the ground once more. The apology didn't seem to register with Sara as she continued to wrap the blanket further around her body, hoping it would protect her from the events which had already occurred.

In all of Grissom's confusion he didn't hear door open. Only did Sara's screams startle him and then it was too late. Sarah's rage was evident on her face, before cocking the gun and firing a shot. It only took one to bring Sara to her mercy and two to bring Grissom to his knees.

"So much for trusting the man you love." She bitterly retorted as she started to wrap both bodies in a canvas bag. The blood didn't take long to pool, becoming a dark red sea of lies, hate and despair. As the Femme carried out both bodies, Greg slowly poked out his head from behind the closet door. He had entered the apartment only minutes before the Femme, only he was too stunned to take action. Now his cowardly mistake may prove fatal to Grissom and Sara.


	18. Chapter 17: Hidden Witness

**Chapter 17**

Femme Fatale

**A/N: **Thanks to Mel for the awesome beta job. This chapter is short but not sweet. More to come soon. To get a sneak peek on my next chapter visit my profile and click on the GSRart LJ link. It's a members only journal so you will have to join. Thanks for reading and for all your wonderful comments of encouragement.

_Grissom straightened his hold around Sara's arms as she went unconscious. Greg opened the door with very little effort as he still had a copy of Sara's key. Locked in the horror of the moment and fearing for his own life, he hid behind the door and searched his pockets for his gun. With no weapon to be found, he continued to watch, aching to help his best friend. Never would he have guessed that Grissom could harm anyone, let alone Sara; however seeing is believing._

_As Greg forced himself to look on, he noticed Grissom wasn't even touching her. He seemed to be talking incoherently as he looked at her with lust. Sara was unconscious while Grissom pleasured himself at the site of her helplessness. _

_**"I have to do something I can't sit here helpless and hiding. What happens if he decides he needs more? Then what?"** Greg thought as he continued to remain hidden behind Sara's bedroom door. He buried his head in his palms as he tried to summon up the strength to see if Sara was alright. He wanted to call in the team. He wanted to call in the police, but he remained frozen, a regret he would live with for quite sometime… For when Sara and Grissom were shot and taken away, he feared he would've played a role in both of their deaths. Little did he know they were both alive, but would be far from well._

_While he watched the Femme pull their bodies out from the room, logic set in. His hands trembled as he called Brass' number and waited for the team to arrive. _

_"Brass… I need help…"_

**XxxX**

Sarah threw the bodies on the floor of her cabin, disgusted already by their presence. She already wanted to take them out to the trash, but refrained from doing so. As she unwrapped them from the canvas bag, she noticed that both were barely breathing. She didn't hit any vital organs; both wounds seemed to be merely surface cuts and nothing immediately serious. Grissom was the first to wake. She was glad that he was stirring, as she had a lot to talk to him about.

"Glad you're awake." Sarah bitterly stated, narrowing her gaze to the floor where he lay bound and bleeding.

"Why?" He merely asked.

"You shouldn't have to ask. You had to get rid of her, not just for yourself but for me. And I walked in to help you with the task and I found out that you are in love with her." She ended the statement with a swift kick to Grissom's stomach. The punch made the feeling of nausea return to his gut.

"You lied to me…You killed all of those people." He said in-between short, gasping breaths. He continued to move about restless on the floor, not being able to calm himself down. Sara remained lifeless but still breathing. She was still unconscious, he was glad. She had been through enough.

"I did what was necessary. I thought I had you by my side for the rest of my life, to help me carry on… to reach my goal." Sarah began to pace the room frantically, moving just as much as Grissom on the floor.

"What is your goal? To kill innocent people and make me believe I did unthinkable things in my past? You ruined my whole life." He yelled, every word being just as painful as the last. Grissom felt a tear fall down his cheek as he remembered what he did to Sara. He deserved his present pain, but Sara didn't deserve an ounce of discomfort.

"You should be grateful." The Femme yelled back- her anger silenced Grissom. "I killed all the others, but fell in love with you. You taught me how to love and I taught you how devious the human race really could be. I never created the evil in you Grissom, it was already there…" She paused and allowed Grissom to reflect upon her version of the truth before continuing. "But all the while I should have known the inner truth; you were a man, which meant you were more than qualified at destroying my life. You and that whore of yours should've been both killed from the very start!"

"Just let her go- she has nothing to do with this." Grissom defended Sara to the best of his ability while tied up. It was a useless cause.

"Contraire, she is the catalyst of my new found rage. She made you remember everything, and now I can't have you, can I?" She moved over to Sara and put both of her hands tightly around her neck. Grissom's heart nearly stopped at the sight before him. He did enough harm to Sara; all he wanted to do was save her from more pain.

"Please!" Grissom screamed in alarm. His heart felt as if it would beat right out of his chest. His entire body wiggled helplessly on the ground, trying to set himself free. He knew he wouldn't succeed.

"Please what?" Sarah yelled, as she turned around to face him in both anger and annoyance.

"What can I do to save her life?"

**XxxX**

"He was here?" Catherine calmly asked Greg, trying to be as gentle as possible. The young CSI looked as if he would have a breakdown any minute- she wanted him alert and not trapped in the silence of fear.

"Grissom was on top of Sara…I tried to save her- I should have… And then… They were gone." Greg started to go back into the fetal position, trying to hide inside his self made cocoon.

"Greg, I know what you saw was upsetting, but you're not to blame. I need you to focus and help us catch Grissom before he's past the point of control." Catherine put her arm around Greg's shoulder in a brief attempt at comfort. Greg continued to shiver uncontrollably, holding himself tighter to regain composure.

"But he's- he was…" Greg stammered, unable to continue.

"I know what Grissom meant to you Greg. He was close to all of us, and a brilliant leader. But we can't let the past cloud our judgment; Grissom has to be caught before he hurts someone else." Catherine sighed. The thought of Grissom being involved in several cold blooded killings and rapes still lurched at her heart, but the evidence was speaking volumes.

**XxxX**

"You want to save her?" Sarah asked in disgust as she released her hands from Sara without a fight.

"Yes…" Grissom sobbed, caring the least about his dignity.

"Then I'm going to make you suffer, in return for her life. Only then can our pain be even. My heart aches and now so should yours." She flashed Grissom a devious grin as she watched his confusion and fear bubble.

"What are you going to do to me?"

The Femme laughed out loud, her cries of bitter amusement were left to linger in the air.

"It's not what I'm going to do that will hurt you, it's what you're going to do…"

As the Femme's statement already evoked fear in Grissom's mind, Sara began to finally wake from her restless slumber of nightmares.

"Glad you're back with us Sara, I wouldn't want you to miss any of what is about to come." The Femme looked over at Grissom and smiled as he slowly began to realize what her intensions were…

Please review- thank you so much for the support.


	19. Chapter 18: Whipped

**Chapter 18**

Femme Fatale

**AN:** Thanks to everyone for their patience in waiting for this chapter. I am posting another this week because of the long wait in between. Thanks to everyone for the continued support. And again thanks **Mel** for the wonderful betaing.

"Nothing. We have nothing!" Nick shouted as he dropped into his chair hard, frustrated that he couldn't find a shred of evidence. He wanted to find Sara and he wished there was a slight sliver of hope that Grissom was keeping her safe. He knew that from Greg's brief, jumbled statement that Sara was in danger and there was nothing the team could do.

"Give it time Nick." Warrick comforted his friend.

"Come on War, Greg isn't going to be able to give us anything. Whatever he saw was bad enough that he is practically catatonic! He just said they 'were gone', gone where? Was Grissom alone? I mean what do we actually know?" Nick slammed his fist against the table and made Catherine jump as she entered the room.

"Just a thought but what about those clues you found at the previous crime scenes? Any luck finding out what all the letters meant?" Catherine sat down beside Nick and tossed him the bag of letters in an oversized evidence bag.

Nick looked at the bag skeptically as if he had given up, even on the evidence.

"I'm still working on it." He huffed as he buried his face in his hands.

The case was taking its toll on the entire team; they just wanted it to end.

**XxxX**

"How committed are you to saving your lover's life Grissom?" The femme smiled as she lured over him with a thick, shiny leather belt sliding across her palm.

"I said I would do anything." Grissom swallowed hard as Sarah grabbed him by the arm and raised him to his feet. He was still weak from his injuries and the room spun immediately from the sudden motion. Sara still shivered in fear, unaware that Grissom was no longer the man that had greeted her earlier.

"It's going to be ok..." Grissom softly whispered to Sara, trying to calm her down.

"I wouldn't tell her anything unless you know it's true." Sarah hoarsely spoke in Grissom's ear, letting her statement swing through the air, never losing its momentum.

"What do you want from me?" He asked, growing more nervous and agitated by the way Sarah stroked the leather belt in her hand.

"I want you to hurt Sara as much as you hurt me." She grinned as she whipped the belt to the ground in one flick of her wrist. The sound echoed through the barren cabin and caused for both Grissom and Sara to jump. He took one look at Sara and knew he couldn't go through with it. But a greater part of him wanted her to stay alive, even if it meant hurting her to do so.

"How can you expect me to do something like that?" Grissom said, as he continued to stare at Sara and not the woman he should be addressing his comments to.

"You honestly believe you don't want to hurt that whore? You did just a couple of hours ago." Sarah laughed as she watched the anger form in Grissom's eyes once he finally locked his gaze with hers.

"I will never lay a hand on her." Grissom bravely protested. Sara still couldn't look at Grissom, and he wondered if she was remembering the things he had done to her earlier. He should suffer for all the pain he caused her, she shouldn't have to endure anything more.

"Then I will." The Femme brought the knife back out into plain site and Grissom caved.

"Please...Don't." Grissom felt his voice tremble once more at the thought of losing Sara. He wished he never would've acted like such a jerk to drive her away from him. If they never had that fight perhaps his life wouldn't have been torn completely upside down. As he gave one last look of regret at Sara he took the belt from the Femme. There had to be a way out of this. He knew he couldn't actually go through with this. He wanted more than anything to save her from more pain then she had to endure. But as he looked around the cabin, he knew what he had to do. In order to save Sara, he had to hurt her.

As he thought about running out of the door dragging Sara with him, he saw now that the Femme had a gun in her hand. What scared Grissom the most was that she didn't have it aimed at him; she had it aimed at Sara.

"Hurry up before I change my mind. And I will know how hard you're hitting her with it too, I don't want sissy welts on her, I want them to be visibly painful. I want you to give her twenty, hard and strong whips to her body. If you change your mind, you know the alternative." Sarah couldn't help but laugh at the tears rolling down Grissom's face as he forced himself to save her life.

With every step closer to Sara's body he felt his life ending. This was not the man he was, how did his life come to this point? He loved Sara more than any other woman he had ever laid his eyes on, and now one woman has destroyed everything he had worked for. He knew Sarah would kill her, she didn't hold any sympathy for the loss of human life, no matter who the person was. He had to go through with it, even if it meant never being able to forgive himself for the rest of his life. He had already derogated her earlier, but that was when he was a different man. The Femme had changed him and his memories- he knew who he was now... And the image disgusted him.

As Grissom finally loomed over Sara's body he watched as his tears fell to the floor and mixed with hers. They were both suffering and he hated to be the root of her pain.

"I'm so sorry..." Grissom whispered and hoped Sara was the only one who heard.

Grissom hesitated, and the Femme gave him a strong look of warning. As he swung his arm back and released the belt he almost collapsed at the sound of Sara's muffled scream. The duct tape did nothing to shield him from her suffering. As he forced himself to continue, every whip seemed to throw away any good memories he had of him and Sara together. He knew that if she were to remember anything about him, this memory would be the only one she could think of. Her cries became louder and louder and Grissom could already feel himself becoming light headed.

"That's it Grissom. I'm proud of you; all of these lashes are going to leave quite a mark. Keep on going." She laughed as she watched Grissom suffer emotionally just as much as Sara did physically. As Grissom released the belt onto her body one last time, he immediately collapsed afterwards. Sara was no longer conscience, probably blacked out from the pain or the fact that the man she loved was hurting her in more ways than one.

"It's a pity she fainted for the last one." As the Femme walked over to Sara; she pulled out another whip and immediately Grissom became alarmed.

"What are you doing?" Grissom rose from his feet and was now filled with adrenaline. She wouldn't hurt her further; he would die trying to keep her safe.

"Oh that's right. I forgot to mention that I get to do twenty lashes as well for good measure." As the Femme threw the belt against Sara's body, she woke up in an instant to the sting of more pain.

Grissom ran over to Sara as fast as he could, but one lash to his shoulder's caused him to collapse once more. He was helpless and now so was Sara.

**XxxX**

"How are you feeling?" Catherine quietly asked as she watched Greg roll over in his bed. Greg had given Catherine an extra key several years ago when the lab exploded. She told him it was her fault and she felt in debt to him. He gave her his keys to get extra clothes and to feed his fish. Catherine reminded him of his mother, who would always keep an extra eye on him since he would fall into trouble the most out of all his siblings.

"No better, maybe worse." Greg was talking now, but still strayed away from talking about Grissom or Sara. Whatever he saw was too much for him to talk about. Greg had stayed in bed all night and day since the incident and it did not look like he was going to change his routine anytime soon. Unfortunately the team didn't have time to wait around for Greg to be comfortable enough to talk about what he had witnessed. She needed to know answers before it was too late.

"I know it's hard to talk about Greg, but I have to ask you a few more questions. We need more to go on and you're the only witness we have." Catherine sighed as she watched Greg's body quickly tense.

Greg buried his head in his pillow which made Catherine feel that her presence would make no difference. A few moments passed until Greg slowly raised his head out of bed and avoided Catherine's gaze.

"What do you need to know?"

"I need to know what exactly Grissom did to Sara and if he was alone..." Catherine managed to lock her eyes with Greg before he lowered his head in submission to the truth.


	20. Chapter 19: Point Taken

**Chapter 19**

Femme Fatale

"Have anything yet Nick?" Warrick asked as he entered the lab, hopeful and fresh from a nap he had taken earlier.

"Still nothing but a bunch of jumbled letters that still mean nothing when I try to put them in order. With this many letters there could be thousands of combinations, ; we could be at this for years." Nick sighed as he continued to force himself to shift around the letters. Just like Sara had predicted, they found letters under every floor board in every crime scene the Femme had been at. The only thing that has put a new spin on the case is Grissom's possible involvement. The news had struck a deep cord with Nick and somewhere deep down he knew Grissom was incapable of harming another. However, the evidence was suggesting that Grissom was connected in at least one crime scene with the Femme, who is to argue he wasn't connected to more?

**XxxX**

Grissom lay beside Sara, now tied up and gagged. He wanted more than anything to say how sorry he was that he couldn't save her from everything she had endured. Now all he could do was flash her a glance and hope she knew how he felt. The cold stare he would receive in return was far from his warm glances and he knew that their relationship was forever over.

"I know how you want this all to be over, but right now I need you to drink this Grissom. You need your strength. " The Femme handed over a glass of water to Grissom, and he carefully eyed it suspiciously. "Of course I'm not giving you any choice to drink it or not." She smiled as she pulled out her gun once more.

As Grissom sipped from the glass, he immediately began to feel dizzy which sunk his stomach to the floor. He was cornered now with only one question. What was in the drink?

"I'm just going to spill. Your drink was a nice combo of drugs that would be an instant hit at any frosh party. A mixture of Viagra and truth serum was in that nice tall glass of water. I can't wait to see the outcome." Sarah sat down on the couch in front of Grissom and Sara and waited for the drugs to have their desired effect.

"You may be asking 'why Viagra and truth serum?' It has a fairly simple answer. I want you to rape Sara and be able to say to her what you're truly feeling. Cause its all about the feelings isn't it? And I can't wait to watch." Sarah got up off the sofa and started to make a bag of microwave popcorn. As each kernel popped, he felt the bulge in his pants grow bigger and bigger against his will. He couldn't hurt Sara any further- he refused. She maybe better off dead than tortured.

Once Sarah's popcorn was done she came back into the room and tore off Grissom's tape around his mouth and grinned once she saw the bulge in his pants.

"Wow someone wants to come out and play huh?"

"Go to hell. She's better off dead and so am I." Grissom yelled, not caring anymore what the consequences of his actions would be. Nothing could be worse than this.

"You think she would be better off tortured to her last breath? Believe me Grissom, I can find many ways of torturing your former lover. You don't want me to even try." Sarah exclaimed while grinning in delight as she watched Grissom contemplate his options. The sweat on his brow was spilling down at a steady pace, much like the rain in the middle of winter in England. Grissom was cornered, but he would not obey willingly.

"You're ill Sarah. Give up now, call the police and turn yourself in before you do even more things you will regret. You couldn't have been this way your entire life, ; you had to have been loved at some point. You loved your mother, and I'm betting she loved you back. Don't carry on punishing every man that reminds you of her rapist and killer just to get even." Grissom felt a tear meander down his cheek, which quickly combined with the sweat running down his brow. He knew she had a soul, every being did. However hers was corrupt with lies and false conceived notions of what is justice within the world.

"You know you're right Grissom. Maybe I should just sit back and think about everything that has gone on in my life. As a matter a fact, I'll think about it long and hard when you fuck the woman you love against her will." She yelled against her gritted teeth. She wasn't backing down and Grissom preyed to whatever god that would listen, to please help him escape. Sara started to whimper quietly under the restraint of the duct tape lining her mouth. She hated Grissom more than any other man in the world at the moment. Any good memories she had of their relationship were about to be ripped away.

The Femme merely smirked at Sara's suffering as she pulled out her knife.

"I thought this weapon of choice would be more appropriate. I find shooting someone is kind of a cop out. Why not make the people you hate suffer the most by cutting something off? You will go through with this or I will begin to take away parts of Sara's body that she will miss." Sarah looked Grissom over before proving how serious she was. His body remained rigid on the ground, ; it was as if he had paralyzed himself not to move. He kept on telling himself to stop thinking, as he began to feel the truth serum take its effect. The Viagra pulsated his urges that shouldn't be nudging at his brain, which caused him to sweat further. He was stronger than this, ; he would fight off the effects of the drugs and not give into her games.

"You really don't think I'm serious? Do you believe I'll hurt Sara?" The Femme asked as she approached Sara's body.

Grissom winced as he felt the truthful answer rise from his throat. A hoarse "yes" emitted from his belly against his will.

"...Then why do you keep on fighting this? You know I will kill her." She placed the knife against one of Sara's fingers, which caused Sara to scream in an impulse of fear.

"Because...I...Love her too much to hurt her anymore. I think she would rather die then for me to hurt her that much." Grissom couldn't fight the tears either from streaming down his face as he gave into the questioning. The drug was too strong, ; he couldn't keep anything from her.

"You love her? She walked out on you didn't she? The night I almost killed you. What good has ever come from your relationship?"

"A lot. She taught me how to love again- I opened up to others instead of burying myself in my work. She means everything to me." Grissom couldn't stop the sudden inset of hiccups that accompanied his crying as he stared at Sara in the eye.

"You love her? If you LOVE her, than why did you almost rape her in the first place? You couldn't even remember who she was for the longest time. You fell in love with a rapist and a murderer and you forgot all about her. You LOVED me! Didn't you?" Sarah cried as she held the knife tighter against Sara's finger.

"YES! God... but that wasn't me! That was someone else you created based on lies and jealousy. You could have let me remember, if you loved me that much. I could' have had a life and now what do I have to live for?" Grissom raised his voice higher, knowing that yelling would get him no closer to escaping the nightmare playing before him.

"Answer me this one question, if you answer 'no' I will let you both go now and I will turn myself in. Think back to the night at Boulder City, the woman you stalked to her home. You dragged me right up to her room and were dead set on fucking her. You didn't... But you liked the idea didn't you? You WANTED to. Deep down you wanted to tie her up and fuck her. You needed to deep down, take away all her femininity, everything that made her a mystery and show her flat out what she was." Sarah searched Grissom's eyes for an answer, as her lips formed a perfect grin as he tried to withhold the answer for as long as possible.

He couldn't answer it, he wouldn't. What his brain wanted to say wasn't the truth, ; the drugs had to have been affecting his judgment. He didn't want to hurt that woman, that wasn't who he was. Gil Grissom was a polite man who kept to himself and loathed any man who would lay a hand on a woman against her will. If this was true, why did he say the answer that stripped him of his identity.?

"Yes...I liked it. I wanted to do it, ; I wanted to feel her struggle beneath me as I owned her body and soul for just one moment. But I DIDN'T. I COULDN'T." Grissom felt his body shake in fear at his response. The answer appeared to be just what Sarah was looking for. She released her grip on Sara's finger and walked slowly back to where Grissom was lying on the ground.

"But- do you want to rape Sara? Is this really something you really don't want to do?" Sarah surprised Grissom by placing her arm gently on his shoulder before he could answer. His whole body seemed to convulse as he tried his hardest to not answer the question. He loved Sara more than anyone else in the world. He didn't want to hurt her, he couldn't. The thought sickened him. But the response he gave made him nauseated and overwhelmed him with a migraine.

"...Yes...NO..." Grissom cried as he pounded his fist on the ground in frustration. "God damn it. Just kill me! Isn't that what you want? Just get it over with! Please!" Grissom plead as Sarah flashed him a wink. He didn't want to hurt her- HE DIDN'T! But he could not explain his response.

"I think question time is over. Let's get to the fun stuff."

**XxxX**

"I think this is an address 'Rick." Nick proudly announced, giving some hope to the investigation.

"Any clue as to what address?" Warrick asked, knowing very well that too many breakthroughs in one day were an improbability.

"If God was on our side I would know. It just seems like every step closer we get to findingfind an answer something pops in our way. I have this sinking gut feeling that Sara is either dead or close to it. It doesn't help that Grissom could' have taken her." Nick solemnly announced, as he shifted around the pieces some more.

"We don't know for sure if he took her or not. All we know is that he was involved with one of the Femme's crime scenes in Boulder City. Until Cath comes back and tells us what Greg saw, we're left in the dark." Warrick slumped down on a chair and hoped that Greg would give them something to go on soon, for Sara's sake.

"Well I guess the right thing to say is 'give him some time, he's been through a lot.'" Nick sighed.

"Yeah well, time is ticking away and soon Sara may not have any left."

**XxxX**

The Femme released the knot from Grissom's bound hands. She quickly walked over to Sara and placed the knife towards her back. It was clear what her intensions were, but Grissom still tried to fight with all his power in not giving into her demands.

"You know I'm not kidding. Take off your clothes." The Femme stayed behind Sara and hit her with the back of her knife if her cries of objection got too loud or constant.

As Grissom's body continued to shake in fear, he slowly took off his shirt. Once the shirt was off he hesitated undoing his belt.

"Hurry up!" Sarah yelled as she dug the knife into Sara's back more forcefully.

Grissom undid his pants as fast as he could and avoided eye contact with both women once his boxers were on the ground. The Viagra worked without a doubt just as well as the truth serum and he plead for both drugs to wear off. He thought of shooting himself with the gun which lay across the room on a table, but shook off the idea once he saw blood start to form on the outside of Sara's shirt. The Femme had been pushing the knife so hard into Sara's back that her skin had broke. She would kill her without hesitation if he didn't obey.

"Take off her clothes... NOW!" Sarah yelled as she temporarily released the knife from against Sara's back and watched Grissom approach her. He fumbled as he walked on the cold cement floor, his legs not wanting to comply with Sarah's demands. Grissom knelt down in front of Sara and plead with her eyes. She was horrified, ; god knows what she would relive from her childhood. She was already traumatized enough and now Grissom was about to make her life even more a living hell.

"I don't want to do this. I really don't please believe me- I love you. But this is the only---" Grissom's whispers were heard and angered Sarah even further.

"Shut up! You think your words are going to make her love you again? She hates you- you have no one. Just do this and you're done. You'll like it, don't lie... Oh wait- you can't!" The Femme polished the knife on her shirt as she stayed within a foot's distance as she watched her demands become a reality.

Grissom started to undo Sara's shirt, leaving the front open exposing her bra. Sara fought back as hard as she could, managing a swift kick at Grissom's back. More than anything Grissom wanted to die as he undid Sara's pants.

"Take off the tape on her mouth, ; I would love to hear what she has to say during all this." Sarah mused as she watched in fascination.

As soon as Grissom took off the tape he was spit at.

"Get away from me!" She screamed as Grissom undid Sara's pants down to her ankles.

"I don't want to do this to you." Grissom cried.

"Then don't! Just don't!" Sara screamed.

"Hmm maybe the tape was a better idea." Sarah exclaimed as she tore off a fresh piece of duct tape and spread it across Sara's mouth. She continued to kick and scream, even though her screams were muffled through the tape.

"I can't do this." Grissom cried as he released his hands from her body and gave into what ever fate Sara now had in store. In one motion the Femme cut off one of Sara's fingers. The action left Sara's face completely red in pain and a never ending scream rising from her lips. She couldn't stop screaming in pain, her legs kicked back and forth as her head bobbed up and down from the action. Grissom was too stunned to do anything, ; he was in shock from what had just occurred. Blood was everywhere and her screams wouldn't let him think of anything else but how much pain she was in. He did this to her- he should have listened. He should' have just diddone what he was told. What else would Sarah do? It was a question that he would live with for the rest of his life.


	21. Chapter 20: Boxed In

**Femme Fatale**

Chapter 20

**AN: **Thanks so much to Erynn for the nice beta job. This chapter is still really intense, but if you made it this far I'm sure you'll be fine. Thank you for the continued support and the reviews- it helps!

As the Femme raised the knife to Sara's throat, Grissom knew now that he could no longer fight her demands. He would do whatever it took, no matter how horrific to save Sara.

"Don't touch her." Grissom said as he grabbed Sara as gently as possible, saving her from the blade which had been a couple of seconds away from grazing her throat. As Grissom slid down Sara's underwear as quickly as possible he noticed that she was no longer fighting him. She had given up and given into the severity of pain that must have still been pulsating through her body.

"If you're going to do it, do it fast and hard. I want to believe you're raping her; there should be no love involved." Sarah bitterly stated as she watched close by.

He apologized once more by looking her in the eye as another tear of his fell to the ground.

The Femme watched, surprised and pleased as Grissom put his hands on Sara's shoulders. He avoided her stare as his hands lingered towards her breasts. The Femme was so transfixed that she couldn't react fast enough to Grissom's next move. His body plunged forward towards the gun on a near by table. As the Femme ran towards him, he picked up the revolver and pointed it towards his temple. He held his breath as he looked around the room one last time before firing the final round into his skull.

Blackness enveloped the silence of his mind as Grissom finally succumbed to the darkness he deserved. The Femme wouldn't kill Sara, not now. Not without him watching and suffering to his last breath.

**XxxxXxxxX**

"So what did Greg tell you?" Warrick asked Catherine as he put a supportive arm around her shoulder. They walked down the lab's hallway at a slow, steady pace not wanting to rush their brief interlude with each other.

"As soon as he was about to get out the truth, he backed out. He was shaking too much reliving it all through his head. He never got out what we needed to know the most." Catherine sighed as Warrick rubbed her back.

He had tried to be there for Catherine when she needed emotional support the most. He had once felt there could be more between them than just friends. However, he quickly retracted when he realized their friendship may suffer if a relationship began. Warrick valued his friendship with Catherine and in no way did he want to put it at risk. Besides, he was a married man now.

"All good things come in time, he'll come around." Warrick tried to calm Catherine down, but knew very well that she needed answers.

"How is Nick coming with the letters? Did he find anything?" Catherine asked as they continued to walk down the hall, briefly acknowledging people as they passed.

"No success yet but he's working on it. There has to be something in those letters that will lead us to finding Sara and the truth about all this." He assured her once more.

"Warrick, do you honestly think Grissom could be in on all the Femme rapes and murders?" She asked, afraid of what the answer would be.

Deep down she still wanted to believe that everything was a nightmare and that it would go away when she woke up.

**XxxxXxxxX**

Grissom's eyes opened as wide as the horizon when he felt his heart steadily beating in his chest. How was he not dead? He had shot himself at point blank range in the head. It was not possible.

The Femme was the first thing he saw and was relieved to see Sara still breathing, without a knife sticking in her back.

"Wondering how you're not sleeping with the fishes huh?" Sarah asked while she casually opened the gun barrel. "You honestly think I would have a gun with live ammo lying around? After I shot both of you, I filled the thing with blanks."

She laughed as she tossed the box over to Grissom. He merely stared at the container in disbelief. "I'm disappointed in you though. I honestly thought you had it in you to go through with it. I bet Sara is relieved, for now." She added.

"So this is all a game?" He gritted his teeth as he was tempted more than ever to strangle the Femme with his bare hands, but he knew better.

She pulled the knife out of her pocket and pointed it towards Sara as a reminder of her power. The Femme crept over to Grissom and he didn't even hesitate; he couldn't risk losing Sara. She surprised him by the gentility she used when she bound his hands together once more and formed his mouth closed with another piece of duct tape.

"I'll leave that for you to answer. Well it's getting late and I bet Miss Sidle needs her rest. We're going to send you off, Grissom!" Sarah said a little too content for the entomologist's own liking.

He wanted to say a million things, even ask an endless amount of questions, but the tape over his mouth muffled any sounds he could make. He was still as helpless as he was when he wasn't bound. At least Sara was alive, even though the pain she felt would stay with her for years to come. He deserved to die, to rot and to never be seen again. He shouldn't have laid one hand on her. The Femme was just testing Grissom to see how far he would go.

As the truth serum wore off, he was afraid of who he had become. He no longer knew who he was and longed to escape from the body which held him prisoner.

"Before I bid you farewell however, I think a conversation is in order. I'm going to rip off both of your tape and allow you to say one thing to each other before I explain what is going to happen next. Make this worth you're while as you may not ever see each other again." Sarah stated as she ripped off Grissom's tape first and then Sara's.

They both stayed silent even though the tape was no longer binding their mouths tightly closed. "Before you fight at the chance at saying something tragic, let me remind you that one scream gives you a quick meeting with my newly loaded gun. This time, no blanks..."

Grissom snapped his head back to Sara who was tied up beside him. His head fought the urge to shout out all the things that were going through his brain but he settled on one.

"I know you hate me and I know you can never forgive me. But I want you to know that I deserve to go through all the pain that you've endured. I hurt you and said things that I still don't believe I said. But please understand: she told me things and made me believe things that were not real, and I deserve to die for trusting her. A part of me must still be caught up in the man she tried to make me. I love you and I …I hope I die a death that is far more painful than what you have experienced today." Grissom winced as a small hiccup of sadness graced the ending of his sentence. He didn't want to show how distraught he was, somehow he wanted to gain strength; now was the time to stay strong for her.

When the Femme glanced at Sara to talk, her response wasn't as long or as thought out. She was in too much pain and so emotionally torn that she couldn't think rationally.

"I hope you die for this, you son-of-a-bitch. You were working with her the whole time, weren't you? Did you rape that woman in Boulder City too? You like it as much as you liked having me? I thought I knew you, but that man I know now is dead once he raped me!" Sara summoned enough strength to spit in his face and succeed in that task.

He deserved everything she said, except for the rape remark. He never laid a hand on her, even though he came close twice tonight: once with an unstable mind and once while trying to save her life. For the most part he was happy she didn't bring up the fact that he was forced to beat her. Deep down inside he was glad she understood it was necessary, or did she? It wasn't his fault, he wanted to save her. Before being able to ask anything further, the Femme placed a fresh strip of duct tape on both of their mouths and explained her next course of action.

"This isn't over yet, lovebirds. Grissom is going to go away for a long time, Sara. But I'm sure you won't mind. You can't stand him right now, can you? He's going to go on a little reunion back to CSI. In fact, he's going to turn himself in. Now I know what you're thinking…Grissom: technically you weren't involved in any crime, but you'll confess to working with me on everything I have done. I need your reputation shattered in writing. Most likely with your confession they'll lock you up for a long time and that is what I want. I want you to suffer, to think about how I was the wrong woman to hurt. You should have just stuck to the original plan and killed Sara while you could have. It would have saved you both from a lifetime of suffering." Sarah let out another laugh as she watched Grissom object on the ground, while Sara stayed completely still.

"I bet you're wondering why you would ever confess to something you didn't do. Well, I'll tell ya: if you don't confess in being my accomplice in everything I have done, I'll kill Sara. But I won't just cap her in the head. Oh no…I will make her suffer for as long as possible until she lets out her last breath. I think her finger was the one thing you needed to see removed to believe me. It's your choice." Sarah ripped off the tape on Grissom's mouth and waited for his response. Without even speaking a word he nodded his head in submission.

The Femme smiled as she placed the tape back on his mouth as she dragged him towards the door.

"Oh, and don't worry Grissom, I'll treat her real nice while you're gone." She grinned as wide as possible as she closed the door behind her, leaving Sara alone in the dark wondering what the rest of her life will be like.

**XxxxXxxxX**

As Sarah's truck pulled up in front of CSI headquarters, she looked back at Grissom one last time and gave him a warm smile.

"I'm doing this for us, baby. I needed you to force any love you had for Sara out of your mind. I want us to be together, but until you experience the pain I did when you stopped loving me, our relationship will not work. Now go in there and confess to everything. You know what I'll do if you hesitate or if you tell them where I am. And take this to make them believe your story." Sarah gave Grissom a small fast food box which would normally house a Big Mac at McDonald's. Instead of there being a hamburger, Sara's finger lay inside the box, bloody and shriveled. Grissom didn't even try to open the container; the thought of Sara's finger being inside was too much for his heart and stomach to handle.

He felt like a criminal and looked like one to boot: hollow eyes and a physique which was worn down and beaten Hell he even prayed he would get the death penalty just like any other convicted ruthless criminal. All that was lacking was the real person responsible for all the pain Grissom had endured for more than two months. He wanted more than anything to see Sarah die for all the people's lives she destroyed and shattered. But as Grissom walked out of the truck and towards the entrance of CSI, one thing became clear: he needed to suffer first before any real justice could be served. If Grissom got life in prison, Sara would suffer for the rest of her life in the hands of Femme to ensure he would not speak the truth. He wanted someone to find Sara and he prayed that his former team could find enough evidence to set her free, alive and breathing.

As Brass walked down the CSI lot, sweat rolling down his face, he swore he thought he saw someone familiar in the distance. As he took off his sunglasses, all the blood rushed out of his face. Grissom was a mere fifty feet away, fumbling towards the entrance of CSI. Without thinking, Brass ran as fast as he could towards the entrance, hoping that Grissom's presence would be accompanied by Sara's. As he got closer he realized Grissom was alone and the sight made his stomach turn.

"Grissom! Don't move. Put your hands up in the air where I can see them."

Grissom was so weak he could barely comply. He didn't take solace in the fact that one of his best friends was the first to find him. It would just break his heart even more to confess his sins to a man that once respected him. When Brass finally reached Grissom, he immediately started to put cuffs around one of his wrists. As Brass grabbed Grissom's other hand, he noticed he was holding a fast food box and quickly feared what was inside.

"Grissom- open the box." Brass demanded and only got a whimper from Grissom.

He didn't want to see it; he couldn't bear to look. As Brass took the box away from Grissom's grasp and opened it, he nearly threw up the lunch that he had just finished at the headquarters' cafeteria.

"Jesus…Gil, what have you done?"


	22. Chapter 21: When the Truth Lied

**Chapter 21**

Femme Fatale

**AN:** All will be happy eventually, I promise. Another chapter is coming this week as this one was not too long. Thank you for your patience and please do not worry, it will all work out in the end. (Even though it seems helpless now!) Thank you to all my reviewers, again you guys make my day. And a special thank you to **Unspoken** for betaing this chapter.

While reciting Grissom his rights, Brass cuffed him as quickly as possible. He called the entire CSI team to the entrance to process Grissom's body and the finger. To Brass, Grissom was no longer the man he knew and admired- he was merely a suspect.

Catherine was the first to make it outside, what she saw was far from what she expected. Blood stains dotted Grissom's blue golf shirt, much like the form of a badly copied Picasso painting. The heavy bags under his eyes aged him nearly ten years, clearly the past few months had been rough on him. The countless amount of bruises and scratches made his skin appear to be dirty rather than damaged and his hair had more salt than pepper, further deteriorating his former boyish appearance. Grissom was now far from boyish; his face had a hard, set-in-stone expression of sadness and anger that never seemed to change. Either he was hurt badly or he did the hurting...

"Brass take him inside; first we process him for evidence then you can ask your questions. I'm sure all of us are dying for some answers." Catherine exclaimed, as she looked Grissom in the eye with disgust. To Brass' surprise Grissom could barely move, his knees were swollen and his muscles were locked. Grissom still barely said a word to any of his colleagues, he didn't know if he was capable. As Brass forced Grissom to enter CSI, he was taken off guard when Grissom collapsed to the ground; his entire body gave out in emotional and physical exhaustion. The action made everyone turn around in curiosity.

"Great, I wanted to bring him in as quietly as possible. We should really take him to the station; you guys don't have the facilities necessary to hold him. I'll call for the paramedics but I want him cuffed at all times." Brass picked up his walkie talkie and made the call.

"You think he will be that dangerous? He hasn't put up a fight yet." Catherine wondered, still in shock at the state of Grissom.

"We don't know for sure what he has done and what he is capable of. I'm treating him like any other suspect in a serial case Cath." Brass bent over and checked Grissom's pulse, making sure he was still breathing.

"Well as soon as he's in good shape we need answers. Sara's out there somewhere I can only hope Grissom took her and is ready to give up her whereabouts." Catherine sighed, as she tried to keep her cool when she saw the rest of the team run towards her in confusion.

"What the hell?" Nick felt a surge of rage seep into his veins as he saw Grissom lying on the floor.

"Don't start anything Nick; we don't even know the extent of his involvement in any case. Let's just take him to the hospital and process him there. Tell Warrick I need him to continue working on the letters for any answers. Come with me, we got a lot of work to do."

"If he laid one finger on her, he will be in worse shape than this let me tell you Cath." Nick tried to keep his anger in check as he tried to remain as subjective as possible.

**XxxX**

Grissom woke feeling a sense of safety and comfort. He hadn't been in a real bed in months. As he began to wake further and gain more awareness of his surroundings, panic finally set in.

"It wasn't a dream…" Grissom thought, as he felt the aches and pains of his body surround him with full force.

"He's awake!" A guard announced, as he signaled Catherine into Grissom's room. Nick stayed behind at the lab, waiting to meet with Doc Robbins to hear the details about the severed finger. In the meantime, Warrick took over Nick's duty of processing the Scrabble letters for any clues.

Catherine purged any thoughts of the former man she once knew, and put on her game face, as if he were any other suspect.

"Believe me, there's a lot I want to know for my own benefit, but now isn't the time for questions of general curiosity. I'm here for Sara and all the others." Catherine's expression remained somber as she took a seat at Grissom's side.

_"Sara…"_ The name still managed to tear at his heart and make him wish that the last twelve hours never happened.

"Where have you been for the past two months Grissom?" She asked, having a notebook open already.

Grissom took his time to answer, remembering the rules the Femme had told him before heading into CSI. He had to lie...for Sara. No matter if it meant a life time of pain, suffering or even death. In the end he deserved any punishment the justice system could dish out.

"I was with the Femme." Grissom said, hiding the gust of his sadness.

"OK, I'm going to make this simple. You know more than anyone how it looks-your prints and DNA were found in the Boulder City case which we have tied also to the Femme. If you're working with her; and God help me if you are, then come clean so we can end all of this." Catherine asked, fearing his response. At this point in her questioning she wanted to run away and forget about the case. She wanted to go back to the way things used to be- simple and logical.

"I don't know if you want to hear it Cath." Grissom gulped down the nervousness as he tried to remain strong.

"You know I have no choice."

"I got too involved. I was consumed with every aspect and detail of the case and I got in too deep." Grissom clenched his fist as he continued to weave his lie further.

"What DID you do?" Catherine stressed for him to continue. Grissom immediately hesitated before continuing. The hum of the florescent lights above sang the tune of his own demise. It was now or never.

"I helped kill all those men. She did the crime and I covered it up. That is the simplest explanation." Grissom confessed, not even buying into his own story. Would she believe the lie?

"How many?" Catherine asked, writing feverishly in her notebook.

"Ten maybe more…" Grissom trailed off, hearing his own voice crack at the false statement. Catherine seemed to buy into his lies rather quickly, as she jotted down something within her notebook.

"Alright I'm going to make this simple because we need an answer fast. Where is she?" Catherine pierced Grissom's orbs with her stare, which caused his heart to nearly stop. She wanted to know where she was, what could he tell her? He pondered long and hard before finally attempting at stringing together a sentence. He was doing this for her; he had to keep on reminding himself.

"I killed her." He whispered, feeling the room spin out of control once more. If they thought she was dead they wouldn't prod him for answers and she would remain alive…Hopefully.

"We don't have time for this; just tell me where she is." Catherine fluffed off Grissom's response and refused to believe his version of the truth.

"You don't believe me? Why?" Grissom asked, his heart pounding in his chest the entire time. He had to convince her, for Sara's sake.

"You loved her, as I matter of fact, I still believe you do. Sara is the last person you would harm. Now that I have cleared up the details, answer my question." Catherine pressed further as she refused to back down.

Grissom inhaled a deep breath before continuing the charade

"She's in a safe place." Grissom put on his best fake grin, which pressed a huge button for Catherine.

"You will get the death penalty Grissom! I'm trying to make you a deal, to at least save your life. I don't know what happened to you, and frankly I don't care. But you're dragging Sara into your mess and she doesn't deserve it. Please just tell me where she is." Catherine's voice echoed across the nearly empty hospital ward.

Clearing out a whole hospital ward for one prisoner? The idea didn't baffle Grissom, it made sense. He was suspected in the involvement of over ten rapes and murders. In a way Grissom would feel comforted in receiving the death penalty, at least then he could pay for the pain he had caused Sara. He should have remembered who he was sooner. He shouldn't have pushed her away in the first place. He could be blamed for a lot of the disappointments and pains of her life, why not pay for what he has done?

"To some the truth is an insult, to others life from the dead." Grissom lowered his head and refused to make eye contact with Catherine any further. If she knew the truth his quote may have had more meaning. She thought of his witty reference as an annoyance which hindered her from saving Sara.

"I'm going to make sure you pay the highest price for what you have done. You know, Greg was there when you took her. We know he was a witness to whatever you did. Did you hear me Grissom?" The look of disgust she flashed him could have stopped any man in his tracks. "We're questioning Greg tomorrow. We are confident he will give us a full account of what occurred." Catherine searched for a sign of remorse on Grissom's face but found nothing but a hint of a smile.

"I wouldn't expect anything less." He said calmly, flashing her another fake grin.

The sight made her storm out of the room.

Perhaps now she will be angry enough to investigate Sara's whereabouts on her own. He trusted his team to find her in one piece. For the moment all he could do was hope that they could think fast enough to put the right criminal behind bars and save Sara. Fear still stabbed him in the gut at the realization of Greg being a witness. He couldn't speak the truth, he would ruin the Femme's plans and in the process get Sara killed.

In the meantime Grissom would finally rest in the place he belonged, behind bars.

Some mistakes he could never forgive himself for, perhaps justice could solve his inner demons.


	23. Chapter 22: Secret Window

**Chapter 22**

Femme Fatale

**A/N**: Again a long update...My school has unfortunately stressed me out to no end. But, I posted and I have written in advance in a notebook. (Which I must type out this weekend.) Thank you again for your patience and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Again your reviews all make my day! Thanks again to **Unspoken** for the beta.

The Femme paced the floor, causing the floorboard to creek in protest. Sara was tied up and gagged, lying in the far corner of the room. The floor was damp and Sara's wound had finally stopped bleeding.

To Sara's surprise in the time Grissom had been gone the Femme had taken care of her, applied pressure to her bullet wound and dressed the stub of her finger. She gave her antibiotics, clean water and food. If only she would release her from her restraints so that she could feel her arms and legs again.

When the Femme stopped in her tracks, panic quickly set into Sara's veins. Her walking pattern changed as she approached Sara's position on the floor. There had been no indication that she would harm her in the past two days, it seemed that Grissom had to be present for any suffering to occur. To Sarah the whole ordeal was just a game at making Grissom suffer the most for being a traitor. She still couldn't understand Grissom's involvement with the Femme; however she knew that he was no longer the man she had fallen in love with a couple of months earlier.

"Comfortable Ms. Sidle? I'm sorry I haven't been doing much talking lately; however I've had a lot on my mind. One thing has plagued me- and I hope you have the answer." The Femme ripped off Sara's blindfold and un-gagged her.

Sara inhaled a deep breath of air, as she adjusted to the light of day seeping in through the black blinds on the windows. The cabin had barely any furnishings, a small kitchen and the only link to the outside world was a small radio sitting on a half broken coffee table. There was no phone to run to and she was sure if she screamed no one would hear her.

"Let me continue..." Sarah grinned as she pulled out a knife from her jacket pocket and cleaned it with the end of her ragged Patriots t-shirt. It seemed like a habit she was quite fond of. "Why do you think Grissom found you more desirable?"

Sara did not dream to attempt at answering the question she was sure was hypothetical, as she tried to steady her breathing. When Sarah gently ran the knife blade across her chest, she could no longer stay calm. The feeling of dread and helplessness loomed over Sara again as she wondered if another part of her body would be severed.

"Perhaps your lips were sweeter..." The Femme watched as her blade lightly grazed Sara's mouth. "Or your neck was more enticing..." The blade found its way to Sara's neck line.

Sara's body quivered in fear, wondering what pain she was headed for. She wanted more than anything to wake from this nightmare she was caught in. Her entire world had been turned upside down and now she didn't know if she would live long enough to see it pieced back together.

The Femme slid her blade across Sara's breasts and down to her stomach where she instinctively tried to fight back. Sarah took a sudden interest as her blade rested on the surface of the young CSI's stomach. Sara's shirt was already torn in several places, the Femme's blade rested on one patch of skin that wasn't hidden under a thin layer of cotton.

"You know what's interesting? You only tried to fight my blade when it rested on your stomach. Granted, piercing one's stomach would most likely result in death and the body naturally would want to protect itself from such a tragedy. But why did you not flinch when I grazed your neck. Not having a wind pipe would be just as bad as bleeding from one's stomach. Both wounds would be un-repairable." The Femme took her blade from Sara's stomach and grinned at the fear etched in Sara's eyes. Her body was still shivering and the Femme knew it was not from being cold. She had hit a nerve or a secret.

"Tell me, does Grissom know?" The Femme asked, lying back in an easy chair she pulled up in front of Sara.

"Know—w w-what? Sara began to rock back and forth, chanting for her to stay strong in her head. She was going to fight this, she would survive this. The team would find her.

"You know- about your pregnancy." Sarah casually asked, while twirling the blade in her hand.

"I don't kno-w what you're talking about."

"I'm going to find out either way. I might as well play along. I'm going to go out and get some needed supplies for our next game. Please rest up for when I return. We'll have a girl talk as soon as I come back." She sounded way too perky as she quickly put the gag back in Sara's mouth and the blindfold over her eyes.

Sara steadied her breathing once the Femme left and tried to remain objective. The Femme seemed to be keeping her word to Grissom. She was still alive as long as Grissom carried out her plans. Time would only tell as to how long the truth could remain hidden.

**XxxX**

Brass' grip on Grissom's shoulder was painful to say the least as he guided him out of the hospital room that had been his sanctuary for two days. It was time to face reality again. Yesterday Warrick had processed his body for any physical evidence. He noticed a wound from a bullet which grazed his shoulder and concluded that Sara must have fought back. Warrick told Grissom that they had found no bullets or casings in Sara's apartment and only traces of both of their blood. The fact that seemed to affect Grissom the most was the realization that Warrick had found semen on Sara's bed.

He was close to raping her, but he didn't. He merely fantasized about the act rather than carrying it out. Even in his former state of mind when he was actually capable at devious acts at least he had a hint of control. In Grissom's book it didn't matter, the fantasy was just as painful as the act. Why did he get off on the thought of taking Sara against her will? Did the need apply to other women? There was a monster that lived inside of him; the Femme's lies merely fueled it.

"Get in." Brass' demand broke him from his thoughts as he climbed inside of the police car. The sound of the door slamming made him jump as he tried to get the image of a helpless Sara out of his head.

"Listen: I don't care why you did it and I don't care about how you got involved. But what I do care about is Sara. I know you Gil, you wouldn't hurt her. Although I thought you wouldn't harm anyone at all, I'm guessing I'm a bad judge of character. We're going to interrogate you until the truth comes out... And we won't grow tired of asking the tough questions." Brass looked at Grissom through his rear view mirror for any kind of reaction. Grissom continued to stare at the floor of the squad car, wondering how many traces of other suspects could be found within the trilobal fibers of the carpet. The interest in the mundane and the ordinary was what was keeping Grissom sane. Anything that took his mind off of the events unfolding was only a benefit to his sanity. Every once and a while, Grissom wondered how Sara was doing and that was when he had to do everything in his power from breaking down. He wanted more than anything to just shout out the truth and help his team find her. However, he knew the truth would set no one free. There was already a great amount of evidence placing him at a crime scene, it made perfect sense that he was involved with the Femme in all or most of her crimes. People assumed he had helped cover up her evidence, however they needed more proof to tie him to the rest of the crimes. He knew that the evidence didn't exist; therefore, he could only hope that his confession would be good enough to hold him.

"You can stay quiet; it's your right you know perfectly well. However we won't shut up, you're going to hear from everyone loud and clear." Brass reminded Grissom of his persistence with a final glare as he turned another corner. It would be only a matter of minutes until he was back at police headquarters. Greg may have been questioned already, he may have told the truth. What would he do if the truth was let out of the bag? He couldn't risk not going to jail; the Femme would be watching the news. He needed to carry out her wishes down to the letter or else he knew for certain Sara's life would be over. He had to get to Greg before he broke down and set Grissom free.

The truth would be a burden they both would have to carry.

**XxxX**

"I'm back, sorry I took a while. We are in the middle of nowhere and a drugstore is very hard to come by." The Femme closed the door behind her and took a small box out of a plastic bag. She hummed an unfamiliar tune as she walked over to Sara and took off her blindfold and engaged her once more. She greeted Sara with an unsettling smile as she showed off her recent purchase.

"You ready to make it official?" Sarah laughed as she pulled Sara up to her feet and ushered her towards the bathroom.

"A pregnancy test?" Sara hoarsely questioned, sounded genuinely confused.

"Don't play dumb. There is only so much you can hide. Eventually I would notice when your stomach started to slowly grow bigger."

"I didn't expect to stay here that long." Sara gritted her teeth as the Femme threw her into the bathroom.

"Well you thought wrong. I'm going to untie you- but if I suspect you doing anything suspicious I will cut something off again, understood? I know it would be pretty hard to do a pregnancy test with your arms tied behind your back." The Femme concluded after letting out a brief laugh. Her laugh was starting to get on Sara's nerves.

After the Femme slammed the bathroom door behind her, Sara was finally alone to collect her thoughts. There had to be something she could do. There had to be a way out of this. Trying to think logical, she looked up to find a small window above the toilet. She may be able to fit through, if she tried. As quickly as she could, she took the toiletries off of the top of the toilet seat and pushed down on it to test its stability. She may make a lot of noise, but if she was lucky she could run away fast enough before she got caught.

"Two more minutes and then I'm coming in." The Femme called out from the hallway. Sara's heart pounded in her chest as she heard the floorboards creek in other room as she paced back and forth impatiently.

It was now or never, she had to do something. She couldn't stand by and hope to be saved. She used the sink as leverage to help her leap up onto the toilet seat without a sound, standing on the back of the toilet itself would be a challenge. As she placed one foot on the top, her heart sank as the loud sound of porcelain against porcelain clashed. Thankfully the sound evoked no response from the Femme.

"One minute." She shouted.

Unfortunately, the countdown remained.

As she placed her right foot on the back of the seat and held onto the small windowsill above her she was starting to feel a sense of hope. As she pushed against the window with all her strength, it refused to open. As she heard the Femme's footsteps grow closer, that was when her ticket to the outside world finally arrived. The window gave out, hardly making a sound. It was a miracle that she was able to fit through the small space and even she was impressed at the speed she was able to run. She had no clue where she was headed; the only thing that was important was running away from the cabin as fast as she could.

All that was around her was trees and soon there was a small distance between her and the nightmares she had experienced. She thought everything was over until she heard an engine start and a horn blare. She knew the race to freedom was not over.


	24. Chapter 23: The next Chapter is coming

Please have my HUGEST apologizes for the LONNNGGG wait on the rest of this story. Some family matters made me unable to write for so long. But now, things have cleared up. I have to re-read the entire story to set me back on track. This weekend I'm getting back to writing and chapters will be posted as soon as they are betaed. Thank you so much for your patience! hugs to all  
-Grissomsbutterfly 


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